Mena told me about her farm stay, and how she was in the coutry for around one week. Her host mother spoke English, but the host’s daughter did not. Sometimes, the host mother would leave for work. There were constantly ants in the kitchen, in their food. So to get rid of them, the host’s daughter would burn the ants on the stove to kill them. The host mother returned, saw this, and was very upset. She sat the girls down to demand they do not kill any being on the farm. And instead, to communicate with the ants, and tell them not to bother them. Mena asked the host mother how to do this; she replied, simply stating to kindly ask the ants to please be elsewhere. 

When the host mother was home, Mena noticed all the ants were gone. But as soon as the host mother left, the ants returned. 

I really loved this story. We spoke on how too many people view other living things as subhuman.

In Porto, August 2025