God's Creatures

I would like to share an experience that would forever change the way that I view the world. Several weeks ago while sitting on my front porch, something "caught my eye". It was a Deer Fawn covered in spots, innocently feeding on vegetation near the edge of a heavily forested area. I excitedly ran into the house to grab my camera, all the while expecting the Fawn to be gone before I could do so. Much to my surprise the Deer was still feeding when I returned, unaware of my presence. I began to approach the Deer hoping to get a close-up of his beauty, but I expected him to "bolt" at any time considering that my Tourette's always precedes me. Despite my loud vocalizations and abrupt tics; however, the Fawn seemed unconcerned. When I was at an appropriate distance to begin photographing the deer, an unexpected chain of events rapidly unfolded. The Fawn began to run towards me as would a dog, with a series of expressions and posturing that conveyed the message: Who and what are you? Are you friend or foe? I stood my ground even though my Tourette's did not, and began to ready my camera for a once in a life time photograph. The Deer; however, had different intentions. He continued towards me until he was about a foot away, and I presented my hand in a palms up position to show him that I meant no harm. I was shocked when the Deer reached forward and gently licked my hand. By this time my Tourette's was wildly out of control, but I managed to compose myself long enough to get a series of close range photographs. Within seconds; however, I vocalized so loudly that the Deer headed for cover. I returned to my house to "show off" the pictures to my wife, and was grateful that I had the photographic evidence to document the encounter, because without it the story would have been impossible to prove. I have thought about this experience for quite some time, but it wasn't until recently that I began to understand the real meaning of the close encounter.

When faced with an individual having Tourette Syndrome, many will say they are afraid of what they don't understand. I have had multiple encounters in my lifetime with people that refuse to be my friend because of preconceived notions regarding my TS related Corprolalia. To quote the highly regarded expert on Tourette Syndrome; Dr. Oliver Sacks: "I have never met a person with Tourette Syndrome that I didn't like". People with this terribly misunderstood illness are very likeable individuals, and many have missed out on the opportunity to experience a quality friendship like someone with TS could have provided. Humans have the tendency to shun anyone that is labeled as being "different", and this is a very unfortunate shortcoming. We all have a lot that we could learn from observing God's Creatures outside of our genus. It clearly states in the Bible that God created animals to serve mankind, but I believe they fulfill an even higher purpose. To illustrate this point, consider my encounter with the Fawn. Deer are born with an uncanny ability to recognize danger using their incredible senses of sight, smell, and hearing. Even though the Fawn, whom I have since affectionately named "Frank", recognized that I could have been danger, he objectively approached me even as I was making loud noises and sharp movements. He put all this aside and attempted to look beyond the confusion to determine who and what I was, and as a result, realized that I posed him no harm and actually I was a friend. If humans could be more like animals, the world would be a much better place to live. It is very ironic that Frank did not understand what I was or why I was making loud noises, but he did not let that get in the way of our brief encounter. The next time you see an animal consider that hatred and bigotry does not exist in their kingdom, so why does it exist in ours? If we modeled our world after theirs, we would all make great strides in understanding people that are different from the "norm". This is the real reason that God put animals on our planet. God has never been unhappy with the animal kingdom, but he has been very unhappy with the human race. The next time you encounter someone with a disability such as Tourette Syndrome, try to look beyond the affliction and get to know the real person. You will be glad that you did.