Somewhere in the forest a rabbit is born. Poofy and cuddly, it snuggles up to its mother for warmth in the cold night. A family began today. They know the passion and emotion of companionship. They grow and learn and taste the green plants and cool streams of the wild.

Somewhere in the forest, a bear is born. It struggles and writhes and opens its eyes and sees the world around it. It feels the soft dirt of the ground and the cold stone of the cave, it smells the scent of the wild and the taste of hunger.

As I watch, the bear goes out into the world looking for food. It spots something it has never seen before; a family of rabbits.

Carnage ensues; the family of rabbits becomes dinner for the bear cub and his family. The rabbits meet the needs of the bears’ bodies. The tissues and proteins and molecules become part of the bears. The life taken from the rabbits adds to theirs.

Years pass, and the bear dies of old age. As his body decays, grass grows; plants consume him. The life he lost is added to theirs. A new family of rabbits consumes the fresh, green grass and its life becomes theirs.

The same thing happens on a different scale all over the planet. Death and life cycle and chase one another. When I die, my body will decay and my molecules will be given up to the new life being born around me. The Greeks called this Gaia, the mother earth. We are all born of the same parts and when we die those parts will rearrange into new people and plants and animals. We are quite literally all the same, and all life is precious.

The measure of our life is how we affect those around us. The only true sin is hurting others.

Love and truth are the only worthwhile endeavors.