What's the value of a life and the cost of love?

What value would you place on a life? What would you be willing to pay to save or help someone you love? What if that someone had cancer and needed expensive chemo, would you be willing to pay for that? (Hang in there, I'm heading somewhere.)

Would you criticize someone who was willing to pay for chemo to save someone they love?

Now... to go a little deeper: is human life more valuable than non-human? Isn't love love, and life life? Are humans supposed to limit their love to other humans or their willingness to reach out and help the non-humans in their lives? Can you really put a monetary value on the love you feel for other creatures and can you judge people who feel love so deeply that they are willing NOT put a limit on the love they feel?

I spoke with a friend today that has a dog who has been diagnosed with lymphoma and she has been taking her for chemotherapy. She said that some people had been very supportive of her effort and others not so supportive at all. The not so supportive ones have gotten her down. I don't get it... how can anyone be critical of another human for the depth of love shown here? Some people might argue "it's just a dog" or "it's just an animal." But love , I don't feel, shouldn't be limited to love for other bi-pedal creatures that have the same number of chromosomes we do. Well, that is how I feel. I'm sure others out there who have a deeper connection with the other creatures that share the world and share our lives feel the same way. Maybe if humaity as a whole felt more connected with the rest of the world and the creatures and organisms in it, we'd not be in a lot of the messes we are in right now.

I was listening to a part of a public radio show just this week that discussed biomimicry. I know what biomimicry is, but I had never really thought about it in the terms that they were discussing. Basically the topic being discussed boils down to this... humans manipulate and beat the elements and chemicals aroudn them into submission to form things they want. They may be mimicing an organism in nature as the basis of their manipulation... but we're not really learning from nature.... we're learning about nature. If we were learning from nature then we'd see that all organisms live within limits. Organisms have what are called limiting factors: temperature, sun exposure, water, pH levels, and so forth. They have to do what they do without kiiling or harming themselve. For instance photosynthesis... plants must capture and covert photons to chemical energy, but they have to do so without raising their body temperatures and so forth to a level that will damage themselve. Many animals do the same things.

Humans however.... humans... force some of these processes. We manipulate all those limiting facotrs we shouldn't. We don't live within our limits.... and the result is polution, environmental damage, depletion of natural resources etc.

Anyway, we have a lot to learn from animals and plants. We may know all the bio-details if you will, but up through modern industrial history we really haven't learned from them. We see their end results and try to copy. Good news is, it sounds like people are now trying to actually biomimic and leanr how to do the things seen in nature but within those limiting factors.

I know ... a tangent.

I think I need to add a line to one of my profiles b/c I have always felt that friendships should not be limited by race, age, color, cread, orientation, cultural or religios beliefs or the lack there of... maybe I should add species. I've had some pretty deep bonds of friendship and love with creatures unlike myself. And I am very thankful to them for what they contributed to my life. Let's see... dogs, cats, birds, snakes, mice, rats, guinea pigs, tigers, lions, mountian lions...lizards. Maybe I'm crazy, but I feel blessed by love brought into my life in whatever form it's offered. And I am thankful for other people who deel the same way as I do. And I totally understand and agree that if you have the means, no one should make you feel badly for helping one you love... human or not.