Be Kind To Animals Week

As Be Kind to Animals Week starts today, I'm reminded of a conversation I recently had with a friend.

I'll be honest, I don't like snakes. Have a profound fear of them. The bigger they are, the more I'm paralyzed by fear. Can't look at a photo of the truly big ones (e.g, the pythons) without shuddering in fear, can't be in the same room as one...even when they're in a tank made with thick glass.

To be clear, I wish no harm to reptiles. I think they all -- especially the big ones -- should be left out in the wild. I doubt The Universe ever intended for boa constrictors and the like to be brought indoors. I would just prefer it, and be profoundly grateful, if The Universe could arrange it so that my path crossed with those of snakes as little as possible. So far, It's been doing a decent job of it since I was in the 8th grade.

So, given that fear, you can imagine what went through my mind when I read this article from Australia about snakes on a plane. When I shared the link and the shudder with my friend in Western Australia (who is not keen on snakes either), she made this comment:

How would you like to be a baby, get taken from your home in the desert, put in a box, transported on the back of a truck, get handled numerous times along the way, get put in a plane -- the noise of take-off alone would've freaked them out. NO wonder they escaped.

Hmmm...hadn't thought of it that way.

During Be Kind to Animals Week (May 6-12), let us remember that kindness needs to be extended to all animals -- even the ones we don't like.