Summary

Rose, a high school student with a passion for chemistry and animal welfare, faces a moral dilemma when confronted with a mandatory dissection class, but her prayers for an alternative are answered when the government bans animal dissections in schools.

Abstract

Rose, a brave and inquisitive girl, excels in chemistry and cares deeply about animal welfare. When her biology class is tasked with dissecting a mouse, she is torn between her education and her moral opposition to harming animals. Despite the pressure, Rose stands by her convictions and expresses her belief in finding a more humane way to teach biology. Her distress over the situation leads her to pray for a solution. Miraculously, the government announces a ban on animal dissections in schools, aligning with her ethical stance and relieving her of the moral conflict.

Opinions

The author suggests that Rose's moral compass is strong, guiding her to question the necessity of harming animals for educational purposes.
The narrative implies that there are ethical alternatives to traditional dissection methods, as evidenced by the government's ban and the practices of prestigious medical schools.
The author's note emphasizes the environmental and health risks associated with animal dissections, advocating for more sustainable and safe teaching methods.
The inclusion of the UGC's ban in India on animal dissections in university courses supports the opinion that humane educational practices are both possible and necessary.

God had answered her prayers once again

A story about a girl, her morals and her faith in God

“Faith decides your destiny, and your trust on it leads you there.” — Simran Kankas

Rose had always been a fearless girl, who had never been intimidated by a challenge. She would face anything, any harm or danger.

But she could not bear the sight of blood.

For her, it was the worst fear that she would ever want to face.

When she came to high school, she opted for the science stream. Her favorite subject was chemistry. It always fascinated her to see how two chemicals that have different properties react with one another when combined. It was like when two people who have different tastes in life meet and under certain circumstances, react and form love. She loved everything about chemistry.

Other than chemistry, animal welfare was her topic of interest.

One day, her Biology teacher divided the whole class into five groups of five each and told them to come to the biology lab for their first dissection class. Everyone got excited.

The first group was scheduled for the afternoon session. Rose was in the second group, which was scheduled for the following morning.

Rose struggled with the idea of killing an innocent animal. For her, it was morally wrong to garner such knowledge despite the harm done to animals, but she kept her thoughts to herself.

The teacher called the first group in the lab. He told the students in the second group that they could also come and watch.

Rose followed her groupmates and went inside the lab.

Everyone was standing around the table. She joined them. She saw a mouse, trying to run for its life, but the teacher subjugated it. A few seconds later, it was lying dead on the dissecting table.

It was horrible to watch. Rose was upset. She had never seen anyone be killed before.

She was lost in her thoughts when she heard her teacher, “Rose, concentrate.”

She looked down at the table. The bloody sight almost made her throw up. The mouse was cut open. The teacher was pointing at its liver and was saying something. Rose could not hear anything, the words started fading away.

Rose had no idea how much time had passed when the classmate nudged her bringing her back from her thoughts.

The teacher looked at her and said, “You cannot run away. It will be your turn tomorrow.” Everyone laughed.

She did not want to run, but she did not want to kill the mouse either. What would she do? There was no escape.

She said to her teacher, “My heart does not allow me to kill or hurt someone, just for the sake of knowledge. I have no solution right now, but it seems to me that there must be a better way to inculcate the knowledge required in students.”

And the bell rang. The class got over.

Her clothes were drenched in sweat when Rose reached home. The thoughts of the bloody sight of the mouse gave her chills. She could not make the thoughts go away.

Rose thought, “I have come across many obstacles in life, but God has always shown me the right path. Maybe this is the time for another miracle.”

And the miracle happened.

When she turned the television on to watch the news (she watched the news every day), she could not believe her eyes and ears.

The news channel was flashing with the headline, “The government has banned the dissection of animals in schools with immediate effects.”

Rose swallowed as emotions rushed through her. She looked up and said, “Thank you, God.”

God had answered her prayers once again.

Author’s Note — As per the latest UN response, slaughtering animals is harmful to the greenhouse footprint. The risk of infection is also very high as animal bodies are full of bacteria that can be harmful to humans.

Some of the most prestigious medical schools in the world like Harvard, Yale, and Stanford use 3D imaging and virtual dissection instead of working on living animals.

In India, The University Grants Commission (UGC), a governmental body that sets standards for university education in India, has banned the dissection of animals in zoology and life science university courses.