LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE December 8, 2008 Issue

'My bit for the world's animals'

Ruth

Hi. My name is Ruth, and I live near Bristol, England. I have no brothers or sisters but really make up for that with my lovely animals. Fourteen animals "own" me! A dog, four cats (yes, they do get along), two degus (South American rodents), three goldfish, two giant African land snails (they are very cute and fluffy), two guinea pigs, and I used to have a rabbit.

I Love animals (as you can probably tell), and I used to get upset about endangered animals such as tigers, giant pandas, and whales (whales rock by the way). To help with this, Mum would tell me: "It's God's creation, and He supports and sustains it. All animals are spiritual ideas of God." Mary Baker Eddy wrote in Science and Health, "All of God's creatures, moving in the harmony of Science, are harmless, useful, indestructible" (p. 514).

I really wanted to do my bit for the environment and the world's animals. So in April 2006 I started my own "charity" or organization called RSTLA—Ruth's Society for the Loving of Animals. Two and a half years later, I have 20 members. RSTLA raises money for different animal charities each year by selling lots of merchandise such as animal info pages that I make on my computer, magazines that I write myself, scarves that Mum and I knit together, calendars, and membership fees. Altogether, I've been able to raise £625.05 [$1,020] which I've passed on to animal charities.