Working for The Department of Child and Family Services when I was in my twenties gave me an unique opportunity to see some of the sadness, despair, and difficulties people who live in poverty endure. I worked with a seventeen year old girl who lived in an apartment where she cleaned cockroaches out of her cupboards everyday before she could feed her 1 year old. No matter how hard she tried the poor conditions of the building and the prevalence of squalor existing all around her made the roaches her constant companions. I was unnerved, not too mention disgusted at the prospect of sharing space with these insidious little creatures. Too strong, too numerous, and too devoted to their survival to be wiped out.
A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine made plans to move out of state, commenting when he told me about it, that he had to get away from all the religious freaks in the state of Utah.
"You people are like cockroaches."
The image his statement conjured in my mind made me shudder. Until I thought about it.
Did you know:
There are more than 5000 different species of cockroaches. Only 10 of these are listed on The World Health Organizations list of human pests?
In The state of Texas cockroaches are the natural enemy to the BulWeavil, the largest destructive force to the agriculture in that area . They do not harm the cotton, corn, or plants, they simply work as natural pest control.?
Cockroaches are the most prominent omnivore in the world. Without their efforts to take waste and garbage and process it into food. The earth would have been overrun with rotten, fetid, stinking piles of garbage and waste thousands of years ago?
In some cultures cockroaches are used as a tea to treat: stroke, high blood pressure, skin problems, and impotence?
Are there cockroaches that carry disease? Yes, it is picked up from the pesticides, garbage, and waste other inhabitants of society throw around the planet.
They are not evil, dirty, horrible, or destructive. They are working to clean away the darkness in this world and bring about growth, renewal, and progress toward a better way. They do not all accomplish their task perfectly. They are all doing their best to fulfill the role their creator has given them.
Religious freaks, Dietary guru's, Self-help specialists, and passionate people who work for what they believe do not judge the individuals around them for not believing in the same things. They seek only to lift and enlighten the ones they think can use the help.
You don't have to be perfect to have information that may help me. You don't have to belong to, or bad mouth any one religion in order for me to see your wisdom, beauty, strength, and goodness.
We lie to ourselves when we pretend that to disagree is to despise. To love a person is to accept whatever they think, do and/or say without condition. To want peace, joy and happiness for someone is to force our own path to it, on the one we love.
I don't want anyone to throw their hands in the air and exclaim in defeat, "Fine. You want me to do it your way. I give up, I will."
Seek your purpose in God's Kingdom. Spend lots of time, energy and thought finding the truth, the way, and the light.
I'm sorry we haven't done a perfect job of loving and wanting what works for you. I'm sorry in our zest for a cleaner, better world a few of our people have gotten on the human pest list. It is not the fault of "The Cockroach" as an organization. It is the fault of the imperfect humans who make up the kingdom. I hope you aren't judging all mother's on the kind of mother I am. I pray you're not judging all women on the kind of woman I am. And I hope you're not judging all the cockroaches based on the one I am.
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