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i get a special happy tinge of joy whenever i bump across an insect in the office
we’ve designed and developed vast systems of buildings and cities and architectural accommodations for shelter and meeting purposes that keep us safe and antiseptically removed from the potentially harmful elements of the natural world
and yet —despite all of our supposedly superior intellect and our advanced, clever separation from nature — these little pesky living reminders somehow find their way back in and our exclusivity suddenly enjoys unwelcome visitors
a spider in the bedroom at night
a sugar ant in the elevator at work
itty bitty fruit flies in the break room — biting gnats around the office plants
i’m momentarily reminded of our rather precarious situation within the fuller world context — our little bubble of humanity resides within the greater realm of nature { of the natural world and universe }
some might decide to step on the ant, to remove this harmless pest from our civilized microcosmic self-designed humanSpace
but i secretly celebrate
i quietly feel like i belong — i am still part of the natural world — i am like the ant, too — i subscribe to the cause, to this hidden reality that really contains us all whether we care to admit it or not
i celebrate with a smile and breathe a little easier for the rest of the afternoon
you can hear the little scratchy sounds of them skittering about inside when you’re looking for a file or for some new meaning
we collect them — we store them — we trust they’ll serve us in some way
but in the end its all simply meaningless, just an unfortunate silly game