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Friday, November 10, 2006
Only A Moment's Difference
When we set up the 2740+ pairs of boots for the Eyes Wide Open exhibit - the 2740+ boots that each represented one of the Americans killed in Iraq - we moved quickly. It took us hours to get all of those boots lined up, and there was no time to note the person who was represented by the boot.
It was not until the next day, when I volunteered to be a helpful presence at the exhibit, that I had the time to really be with the boots - to read the names, study the smiling photos attached to them, and take in that these kids were the same age as mine. Or younger.
It struck me that, on one day these were boots to line up. The next day, they were young men and women who had dads and moms and sisters and brothers and husbands and wives and babies. And they all had died in this occupation of another country.
In the book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan writes about the time he spent on Polyface Farm. You will have to read the book to learn about this sustainable farm. It's definitely worth a read - it made real the beauty, complexity, and sacredness of our earth and our food source. A far cry from the plastic food we find in the stores.
Anyway, at one point, Michael participated in the slaughtering of the chickens. The hens were put upside down in cones before he sliced their necks, one at a time, with a sharp knife. He saw into the eyes of each chicken before he killed it. At one point, he realized that he was into the rhythm and could act without thought for what he was doing; his focus was on his technique, not the fact that he was killing.
Michael writes in the book:
"I told him killing chickens wasn't something I would want to do everyday."
"Nobody should," Joel said. ..."Slaughter is dehumanizing work if you have to do it every day." Temple Grandin, the animal-handling expert who's helped design many slaughterhouses, has written that it is not uncommon for full-time slaughterhouse workers to become sadistic. "Processing but a few days a month means we can actually think about what we're doing, " Joel said, "and be as careful and humane as possible."
Contrast this philosophy and method of "processing" hens with the method used to bring your chicken to you (if you're not vegetarian), whether it is from the grocery store or McDonald's. We're talking conveyor belts. Mass processing done with no thought for what is humane.
And apply Temple Grandin's words to how we do war.
Putting out boot after boot, sending "smart bombs" to kill anonymous people, inhumane treatment and killing of animals for our food source. When we lose our connection with the cycles of life; when we feel a need to be fast and efficient; and when we think we have a justification for our actions, we humans are easily able to separate ourselves from the morality and humanity that we profess.
When we slow down and look at the name and age on each boot; when we look into someone's eyes and learn about their life and dreams and loves; when we are willing to look into the eyes of an animal and make a conscious decision about whether or not it is necessary to kill it so that we may survive and we accept that animal's blood on our hands, then we can say that we value life. Otherwise all life is only a means to an end. And your life and mine are not exceptions.
.
It was not until the next day, when I volunteered to be a helpful presence at the exhibit, that I had the time to really be with the boots - to read the names, study the smiling photos attached to them, and take in that these kids were the same age as mine. Or younger.
It struck me that, on one day these were boots to line up. The next day, they were young men and women who had dads and moms and sisters and brothers and husbands and wives and babies. And they all had died in this occupation of another country.
In the book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan writes about the time he spent on Polyface Farm. You will have to read the book to learn about this sustainable farm. It's definitely worth a read - it made real the beauty, complexity, and sacredness of our earth and our food source. A far cry from the plastic food we find in the stores.
Anyway, at one point, Michael participated in the slaughtering of the chickens. The hens were put upside down in cones before he sliced their necks, one at a time, with a sharp knife. He saw into the eyes of each chicken before he killed it. At one point, he realized that he was into the rhythm and could act without thought for what he was doing; his focus was on his technique, not the fact that he was killing.
Michael writes in the book:
"I told him killing chickens wasn't something I would want to do everyday."
"Nobody should," Joel said. ..."Slaughter is dehumanizing work if you have to do it every day." Temple Grandin, the animal-handling expert who's helped design many slaughterhouses, has written that it is not uncommon for full-time slaughterhouse workers to become sadistic. "Processing but a few days a month means we can actually think about what we're doing, " Joel said, "and be as careful and humane as possible."
Contrast this philosophy and method of "processing" hens with the method used to bring your chicken to you (if you're not vegetarian), whether it is from the grocery store or McDonald's. We're talking conveyor belts. Mass processing done with no thought for what is humane.
And apply Temple Grandin's words to how we do war.
***
Putting out boot after boot, sending "smart bombs" to kill anonymous people, inhumane treatment and killing of animals for our food source. When we lose our connection with the cycles of life; when we feel a need to be fast and efficient; and when we think we have a justification for our actions, we humans are easily able to separate ourselves from the morality and humanity that we profess.
When we slow down and look at the name and age on each boot; when we look into someone's eyes and learn about their life and dreams and loves; when we are willing to look into the eyes of an animal and make a conscious decision about whether or not it is necessary to kill it so that we may survive and we accept that animal's blood on our hands, then we can say that we value life. Otherwise all life is only a means to an end. And your life and mine are not exceptions.
.
posted by Carol at 9:55 AM
2 Comments:
Hi there, I swung by from Isaiah's. Nice wording on the line "all life is only a means to an end".
The link you had in another post to photography was great, some nice shots there, thanks for providing it.
Thanks for visiting!
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