For Denise

A Mourning Dove sat on the bench on my front porch one morning as I sat down with my coffee. 

"Good morning, Mr. Pigeon", I said.  I often speak to the birds and animals around me, since, well, there is no one else to talk to most days. 

But as soon as I uttered those words, I felt like I had to apologize to the bird. 

"I'm sorry...I meant Mr. Dove!  So sorry to offend you."

Okay, so most of the conversation above was in my head, but it got me to thinking about my ingrained opinions on things.  For example, why do I think that a pigeon is a lesser creature than a dove?  The media has something to do with it I'm sure.  Pigeons are shown shitting on things, while doves are the symbol of peace.  But where did the media get that opinion?  Where did I get that opinion?

Consider rats and mice.  They have fur, and four legs and a tail, just like gerbils and hamsters and guinea pigs.  If hamsters roamed the New York subway system eating our leftovers, would we cringe at the thought of them too?  Why are they different?  Is it because we were taught that they were different by our parents, who were taught by their parents, and so on?  Is there some sort of genetic memory going on here?

When I would see a homeless person on the subway, or in the streets, my first instinct was disgust and avoidance.  And I heard over and over again from my colleagues that they smelled bad.  And that they were panhandlers who would just spend the money on cheap wine.  But almost without exception, the homeless people I saw were sleeping, and didn't smell bad, at least from what I could tell sitting across from them.  I never once was asked for money.  And the panhandlers on the train were in much better shape, and would often perform for the money, with music, or at the very least a rousing speech about Jesus.

So why are we ashamed of people who are mentally ill, or homeless, or addicts, or prisoners?  By the grace of God only I have been spared such a fate.  And trust me, there are some that think that living alone with 5 cats qualifies me for at least one of the above. 

The next time you have a visceral reaction to something or somebody, ask yourself this:  is this something I feel for a reason, or do I feel this way because someone has told me that I should?  Personally, I don't like being told what to do, so the next time I see a pigeon, or a rat, I'm going to speak to them with love and kindness.  Not so sure about Mr. Snake though - the story of Adam and Eve had to be true, right???