And it's personal too. Not huge farms and vast flocks and herds - not at the orphanage anyway. Just families here and there with a few goats or a few cows to live off and create sustenance for the children.
There's something more in the relationship they share with nature. I know we love our little animals, and I can't quite put my finger on it, but maybe there's something less of the sentimentality in the closeness?
They cuddle them like we would ...
And they have them do really silly things and make animal-fools of themselves like we would too ...
But for them there just seems to be more of a common-sense understanding of how something like this goat fits in ... a connection my consumer-shrouded eyes wouldn't naturally see. It's that entwining of humanity with nature that gives the cuddle and the play a far bigger dimension.
Maybe it's because of a need-fueled appreciation of the value of each creature as part of the children's daily life and survival. I remember once waiting for my morning coffee from Vanitha but it didn't come. Why? Because the cow hadn't finished being milked so the milk hadn't made it to the table. It soon did, and it was udder-warm.
The point is, I never have to wait like that here, so I never have that feeling of being entwined like they do. It makes their lives far more rounded and complete than mine ... even though I have far more stuffed in than they do.
Oh, and the goat above may well belong to Peria's family. I'll tell you about her soon.
Still thinking about our project dilemma ...
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