Year of the Rat

Saturday Jan 25th marked the beginning of a new lunar year - the year of the rat.🐁

This is a photograph I took (about 10 years ago) of a dear friend’s daughter. She was receiving her favorite yogurt snack and you can see a bit of it on her chin. She was a hairless rat (in spirit now) and so very sweet - her energy was kind and gentle.✨

I exhibited this photograph in several art galleries around the country and I clearly remember receiving an unexpected heartfelt handwritten letter from buyers (in think in Louisiana) - who had made the effort to get my address from the curator (this was before everything was on social media.)

They thanked me and said that seeing a rat shown like this in a loving situation with her human completely shifted their perspective regarding how they felt about rats in general.
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This was very touching for me and expanded my perspective regarding how many different ways there are to subvert the species hierarchy. Everyone can contribute with their own abilities /talents - whether it’s art, writing, hands on rescue, advocacy, and so forth. We all have unique talents and can use them to shine this awareness forth.🌟