For Every Thing There Is a Purpose

A Goldfinch I Saw on One of My Walks

This will be short.  I just returned from an afternoon walk at Swan Creek Metro Park.  The sky was so blue with puffy white clouds.  The air was cool.  It was a perfect day for a walk....until I came upon a small family.  At least I am assuming these three were a family.  There was an older woman who looked like the mother of a younger woman.  With them was a young girl, about five years old.  She had blond pigtails that flopped as she ran ahead of the two women.  They were walking the same direction as I was....but much slower.  The little girl would stop and run back and then run ahead again.

I saw all of this from a distance and then saw the two women stop and look at something on the ground at the side of the path.  One of them picked up something, maybe it was an acorn or some kind of berry.  The little girl came running back to see why the others had stopped.

The younger woman pointed at something, "Do you see it?"  I heard her say in an excited voice.  I wondered what it was?  I was getting nearer to them, but could not see what it was.

The older woman said, "GET IT!" 
The younger woman joined in, "Get it, Get it!"

And the little girl stomped on something.  I gasped!  Who would encourage a little girl to kill something?  I am sure it was a spider or bug...but that doesn't matter.  I can't remember a time when either of my parents would have told me to kill something.   I was shown the beauty in each creature and to respect life.  I remember reading a book about Albert Schweitzer when I was probably eight or nine.  He mentioned that even the ants have a right to walk upon this earth. 

Isn't this a cute little fellow?

I continued my walk.  I wanted so much to say something to these three, but I didn't .  I felt sad for the little girl.  What did she learn on that walk?  Memories of my father telling me about how spiders and snakes were good for the garden.  Every animal and creature had a purpose. (I still don't see the purpose of mosquitoes.)   I came upon a caterpillar walking across the path, bent down, picked it up and deposited it far into the trees.  I feared it might be the next victim.