I have always loved animals. Even my own children have made fun of me for the extremes I go to protect animals. They laugh as I shoo boxelder bugs out the front door or transport a giant spider to a safer place. When I was a coordinator at the Bonanza Education Center I experienced animal cruelty that haunts me to this day. A third grade student screamed, “Mr. Mike!” and pointed to a huge, and I mean huge, spider resting…..
When I was in high school our English teacher required us to memorize Joyce Kilmer’s famous poem, Trees. “I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree, A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed against the earth’s sweet flowing breast.” It continues on for several more verses but I won’t share the complete poem with you because the first few lines are all that are required to make it very evident that Mr. Kilmer wasn’t picturing…..