Stephanie Stephan: with love. My name is Stephanie Steffen and I am your host today. This is a podcast dedicated to the love that animals have for us because their love is unconditional, is special, is beautiful, and it needs to be celebrated. And this space right here, right now, is for that specifically. If you are an animal lover, this is a podcast for you. And if you know of any other animal lovers out there, feel free to share this broadcast. It will definitely make your day. Alright, today the episode is dedicated and perhaps it's not in the actual category of an animal as much of an insect. However, I would love to dedicate this episode to the nanoslox. And yes, they are slimy. Yes, maybe some people will feel a little squibish about the thought of a banana slug, but No creature ⁓ exists because they are a Every single creature has a purpose, has a reason for existing, ⁓ and has ⁓ a good value contribute ⁓ the well-being of the whole. For that reason, ⁓ perhaps... For just one moment, we can bypass the feeling of squirmishness that maybe some of us may be having at this point. And let's just try to just forget about that sliminess factor. And let's just focus on the actual creature itself as being another creature that inherits this earth. And the reason I picked this one in particular is because I have a really interesting and perhaps amusing story to tell and at least for me this I find quite amusing and for that reason I just I just needed to share. A few years back I was attending this party with a few friends of mine. was Memorial weekend. all got together and living in the Pacific Northwest of course with the humidity in the soil ⁓ is a common scene to spot banana slugs here and there. It depends on the time of the day they are coming or going to their safe shelter to go and feed and go to sleep. So it was just a regular afternoon when this banana's log was just making its way to its safe location. And a couple of friends of mine and I, we were just walking by in this path. I was actually just heading home. I believe they were too. And as we were going up the steps and we were outside in the yard surrounded by beautiful trees and of course there was some moisture on the ground. We spot the most incredibly huge and I mean huge bananas. We all three of us stopped right in that moment because we see them all the time. As I mentioned, it's a common scene here in the Pacific Northwest. So, spotting a banana's log, there is nothing unusual about that. What was unusual, what was its size. And we all admire this banana's log, but for some reason, perhaps there was something about the energy that I was exuding in that moment because I was just not only fascinated, but I was admiring. I was loving this insect for what it was. I was just so mesmerized by it. And for some reason, the banana slug made a 90 degree turn from its trajectory to turn towards me specifically. It started sliding its way towards me. And I just couldn't believe how interesting that was. Never in my mind had I ever considered the possibility that this one particular small creature would intentionally change trajectory to make an encounter with me. That never crossed my mind because I always think, of course, they have a purpose for moving. They go so slow. Their bodies do not have legs so they can run and go quickly to wherever they are to what the destination is. They go very slow. It is very intentional that they are going exclusively for something that is going to a need for survival. That was my thought. For that reason, seeing this banana smoke changed trajectory to go towards me because I am not a shelter and I am not food. I was very surprised, in fact. And at the same time, I felt so deeply honored that this tiny creature actually noticed me. And not only noticed me, but wanted to be closer to me. And... Perhaps if we just get past the thought of, it is slimy and perhaps it's not a puppy or a kitten, it doesn't matter. It is magical. This creature chose intentionally to change the trajectory and get closer to me. How incredible is that? I... just want to ask the question to all of you listening to this episode right now. Has this ever happened to you? Have you ever noticed that there's been an insect that is going in a specific direction other than a mosquito, of course? Okay, let's just be real. Obviously, the mosquitoes are always going to come to us because we are food supply for them. But another insect that does not feed on our blood. Have you noticed one that is coming towards us intentionally just for no other reason than just to be with us? Not because they need us, but because they want us. Have you ever had that encounter? I don't believe that I have ever noticed that before until this particular day with the banana slot. So what I would like to share with you today is just this moment, this lesson. and say, pay attention to all the creatures on the earth, not just the animals, but also the insects, because the insects are also sentient beings. They are also magical. They also have reasons for doing things that they do. And if you don't believe me, try for yourselves. What was the reason for this banana to change trajectory when it encountered me? up the steps, there was no reason I did not put supply for a banana. They don't have anything to do with me if it was instinct or survival, right? But it did. It actually did. And for me, that is a very, very magical story to tell. And what I would like to invite all of you that are listening to this episode today. Pay attention to those encounters with the little creatures, with the flying ones, with the slimy ones, with the ones that just slither around. All of them. Just pay attention to that because chances are in one way, shape or form, they are trying to connect with us. Also, they want to communicate with us. They want to... be in our presence and I find that is just such a beautiful way of teaching us connection. If we are able to connect with this small creature, with this tiny little being, and we are able to get past the appearance of this animal or this insect. Imagine what we would be capable of doing as a human being if we can also get past the appearance and be able to connect with other human beings. So this might be a tiny little story of a very magnificent banana slug, but the wisdom of this story is something that we can extrapolate and integrate into our lives. when we are connecting with other human beings. How we develop the capacity to get past the appearance factor of another being. Have we been able to do that? Because if we have, then we are a step ahead in terms of being able to love others. But if we haven't, let's think about this banana's love and remember. Okay? One tiny little creature came out of its way to come and connect with me. Can I also make that same connection with it? And I hope you find this episode to be thought provoking. I thought you find this episode to expand your realm of possibilities to how we are able to connect with all others. regardless of size, shape, or form. And I hope that this episode is also opening up that curiosity to experiment and to know these things a little bit more. Because what if we go through the entire day and we cannot even recall a single encounter with any other creature other than the people that we talk to? ⁓ huh, perhaps you're even thinking about it right this minute, right? Did I even see a bird? Did I even remember seeing anything? You may be thinking that, Well, I hope this episode is going to open up that realm of possibilities so that what we learn with the animals and the insects in this case, we can also apply in our lives so that we can become better human beings. We can live our lives with an open heart. We can live our lives with the capacity of connecting with others from the heart, not because we have an agenda or not because we have a need. And we can do it without any biases because we do not care size, shape or form. We are able to see past that and connect directly from the heart. Until next episode, I would like to remind all of you if you like this story, also you would enjoy my book. It's called The Path to Unconditional Love. It is a collection of animal stories. They all happened directly to me. So this is my direct experience with the animal world. And every single story has some wisdom to share with us, all of us. so that we can all live in our hearts and be the best version of ourselves every single day. Until next time, be kind to others and most importantly, be kind to all the creatures on earth regardless if they are slimy, regardless if they are slithering, flying, running, swimming. All of them are amazing. They all have a purpose. They all have a reason for being here. and they'll have lots of wisdom to share with us. Until next time.