I have a small housecat, Harley. She loves unconditionally and asks little in return. My heart is always drawn to the small,helpless creatures of the world. That is why I cannot bear to watch a particular commercial on television about animal cruelty. When I see the pictures of neglected and abused animals, my heart breaks.
Our world can be a cruel place for those who can't speak for themselves. This includes children, the mentally challenged, and the elderly, as well as animals. Organizations exist to protect such groups, but too often, they fail. And these innocent individuals and animals are left to fend for themselves.
It is up to the rest of us to speak for them, to raise our voices and say that such abuse will not be tolerated. It is easy to turn a blind eye to such cruelties. If we do so, though, we risk our humanity.
This I know for sure: how we treat those weaker than ourselves is a measure of our civilization.
I think our heart goes out to innocent animals because we identify with them. At some point, we're all in the position of being smaller and weaker than our environment (although, like cats, we like to think we rule the place). For the mercy that our Father in Heaven grants to us, we can only "pay it forward" to others, including animals. Charity doesn't know species.
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