I pondered today my duty to fellow living beings. This conversation with myself started with two ants who visited me in the shower. I used to share my daily shower with a spider, who scuttled away at the first sign of my presence, and I never minded that. For some reason, I view ants differently. Perhaps I need more to think about, but this prompted consideration of how we determine who, or what, has merit. What can be squashed 'like a bug' with impunity, and when does the act of destruction become worthy of disapprobation? Snails can be crushed, but butterflies should not be.
Taking a pen from work is not stealing, but taking money from a co-worker's purse is larceny. Gossiping about the woman with the short skirt and low cut blouse is permissible, normal, but lying on a job application is not.
There is a continuum of behavior; one end of which is clearly immoral, wrong and despised, the other end of which is morality to the point of absurdity. To further complicate matters, the point of harmony for me varies with the subject matter, sometimes with the facts of the situation. Picture a number of strings laid parallel end to end. Maybe this is how music is made-a guitar chord made up of various points on the strings of the guitar. When done well, the result is melodious and integrated, even beautiful. Poorly played, it becomes a cacophony of noise.
So what happens to the ants?
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