The Hundredth Monkey

Here’s a sharing from an older and well-seasoned rescuer who has seen decades of rescue work:

I hope the coming year will be better than all the years before. Please do not despair if
you faced with challenges; it only serve to make you stronger in person and in spirit.

If what you have tried to communicate all this while does not seem to bear fruits; I would
like to share with you what I remember from my Behavioral Science case study a long time ago on
how ‘new awareness is created and communicated from mind to mind’. The Hundredth Monkey’
by Ken Keyes Jr.,

“Japanese monkey Macaca Fucata had been observed for 30 years. In 1952 in the Island of Koshima
scientists drop sweet potatoes in the sand. Monkey like the taste of sweet potatoes but find the dirt
unpleasant. One 18 month year old named Imo solved the problem by washing the potatoes in a
nearby stream. She taught the trick to her mother. Her playmates too learned the new tricks and then
their mothers too. Between 1952 to 1958 young monkey learned to wash sweet potatoes to make
them more palatable. Then something happened in 1958, the hundreth monkey learnt to wash potatoes
in the morning and by evening almost every monkey on the island washed their sweet potatoes. It is the
added energy of the 100th monkey that created an ‘ideological breakthrough!. The idea jumped over the ocean�and to other colonies on the other islands. This where a critical number achieves and awareness, the
new awareness is communicated from mind to mind!.

The analogy is like what you have been teaching the community all this while. It will reached a critical
stage where people will be more aware of the necessity to help stray animals. When we started there only a few of us�but now the number had grew.

Noted in your blog re your frustrations on the power that be. Maybe you should break rank instead to
voicing your concern to your SJ representative you should go straight to the MB of Selangor. Since
election is near; he might want to listen just to save some votes. Who knows, you already have the
platform maybe you or W could stand in as independent candidate. Animal lovers will sure vote for you
all. You already have the Voice just need it to be louder.

(Thanks but it has never crossed my mind to go anywhere near politics at all. I prefer managing small projects like AnimalCare where I can be totally and completely responsible for what I do and my guiding principle is that whatever I do must be able to sustain itself even if nobody else helps me. Hence, I only do small things. This is all I can handle for now.)

As for us we are the silent majority who had not cast our votes yet as so far we believe as far as animals are
concerned the system is a failure. We do not have faith in politicians or the power that be� but we believe in doing�the works ourselves.

(Hear, hear! I can’t agree more, but don’t let us influence the rest of you. Please vote if you see a good reason to do so, but please vote wisely and don’t waste that voice.)

All the best and Good Luck for the New Year 2012.
Take care.

(Let’s be that hundredth monkey and teach others what we know and believe is right. Example is the best form of education!)

Source: http://myanimalcare.org/2012/01/01/the-hundredth-monkey/

Tweet

AnimalCare

AnimalCare is a registered society that promotes caregiving to street animals and helps in their neutering and medical needs. AnimalCare has a Medical Fund, Food Fund and Education Fund.

More Articles   |   Pets For Adoption   |   Website