An ant found crawling in my linen drawer is enough to remind me how not cool I am with sharing space with certain other creatures on the planet who have as much right to be here as I do.
In theory, I believe there are far too many of us humans on the planet and we should be doing our best, as the most “advanced” species, to look after the others and not just take over their space willy-nilly, as we have been for aeons. Then there’s the reality that I’ve been a city girl all my life and deep down I believe that crawly creatures belong in the great outdoors, but preferably not eating my favourite plants or building anthills in my flower beds. As you can see, I’m a bit conflicted, if not hypocritical, in my thinking.
Cities were built for humans, so any other animals who turn up here are almost always noticed, simply because of their comparative rarity. Consider bird-watching as an example. We see birds every day, but I still pay more attention to them than to the strangers who pass me by. I’m happy that some animals have managed to figure out how to co-exist here (on the lands of their forbears, after all, even before the First Nations claimed it) in the city with us, and to enhance our existence, or at least some of them do. Ants, possibly, though I’m not sure how, but birds, bees, butterflies, for sure; even raccoons and skunks add a certain “je ne sais quoi”, to an otherwise hohum day in the city. I admire their adaptability, since we humans have done our utmost to make living in the city comfortable for humans, not so much for the other guys.
Another animal who might turn up, like a fox, deer, coyote, or bear, depending on the city’s location, would certainly create a stir and might even make the news, maybe even get itself killed; yet it seems shameful that we can’t allow them a little run of the place, since we’ve been so greedy with our space. Oh, okay, I get it, a bear or a coyote could kill a person or a small dog and that would be bad. Still, I can’t help feeling that they don’t have enough room of their own, otherwise why would they chance entering our inhospitable space?
Well, I’m off on a tangent now, but I’m glad that the ants who dare crawl around our house have made me examine my relationship with other species in general. Could I live in the country where I’d be facing a lot more other animals and insects? I’d like to think I’d get used to it and develop a more welcoming or at least blasé attitude, but I doubt I’ll ever be cool with ants in my linen drawer.
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