Nature Speaks. Дебора Кеннеди

      This poem was prompted by watching the eloquent hand gestures of a woman on a train in Australia. Her graceful curving motions reminded me of the movement of birds — actually not surprising because birds, bats, and humans have the same set of bones in our forearms. From humeri to phalanges, we all use the same working parts given us by common ancestors, but specialized to suit our own individual tasks. Recent research reveals other ways we are closely related to other life forms. In 2004, scientists discovered humans share approximately sixty percent of our genes with Red Jungle Fowl, the ancestral species of all domestic chickens, and even more astonishing, we share almost twenty-five percent of our genetic material with wine grapes. This research illustrates the deep fusion between humans, animals and plants — the result of our common inheritances from distant ancestors. This profound kinship we share with all life on our planet should inspire us to respect and foster all species.