An oldie but a goodie...

I can remember when I was a kid my Mom and Dad would sometimes treat us to a day at the Racine Zoo. Racine is a city just a minute away from where I live and they've always had this little zoo in the middle of the city. I can remember climbing all over the cement bank/statue of the elephant and my Dad giving me a quarter to put inside it so they could save up enough to get a real elephant someday. That's the kind of zoo it was - small, quiet, and completely charming. Looking back, and knowing what I know now, the enclosures the animals were kept in were less than optimal. The bears were kept in small rock and cement cages with cement tubs filled with water. I remember watching the polar bear roll in and out of his tub. I was fascinated but now I realize he was desperate to get out of the Wisconsin summer heat and that tiny tub was all he had.

I'm happy to report that the conditions at the Racine Zoo have changed dramatically. They've removed the old enclosures and created more natural settings for most of the animals. And they continue to improve it every year. Zoos are both a happy and sad place for me. Happy because I love watching the animals and seeing them in person, up close. And sad, because I know that these animals should not be in captivity but in their own wild habitats, living their lives as they were meant to be. Still, I see a use for zoos if they are done right. Zoos can help us better understand the animal world and eco-systems beyond where we live. That knowledge can elicit empathy and a caring nature that won't stand for things like fracking, over mining and the end of the rain forest. The more we know about the beings that live there the more we can help them remain in the wild. I shudder to think that one day the only place some of these animals will live will be in a zoo.

Today, Alex and I spend the day at the Racine Zoo. We saw a rhino, a tortoise, some camels, giraffes, lions, and apes and spider monkeys. We petted baby pigs and saw baby goats too. And it was a beautiful day at the zoo. So many memories came flooding back as I walked around the tiny perimeter. And so many hopes were aroused too as I saw how far that little zoo has come throughout the years. Nicely played, Racine, WI. Good job!