We're the worst kind of monkeys, I'm afraid
Out of a mixture of necessity, curiosity and many other reasons outside my control, I spend a lot of time on Instagram. My experience on this platform is far from particularly pleasant, but sometimes I scroll down further to see what’s hidden deep below the fold. In 9 cases out of 10, it’s cat videos. But in that one odd case, it can be something as unexpected as… feeding monkeys bananas.
When you search ‘feeding monkeys bananas’ on YouTube, you’ll inevitably come across videos by this non-profit organization based in Nepal that helps animals in need. Most of their videos usually follow the same pattern: a person wearing a camera on their body meticulously splits every bunch of fruit into single edible units, packs them into a crate, puts it on their scooter and delivers it to some other place in town, to a herd of small, oddly cute, and probably hungry animals.
While this is probably just another day in the office for those compassionate folks, there is something incredibly satisfying about watching every single stage of this whole ritual. There is something to be said about care and passion towards those wild and often misunderstood animals.
The most interesting part, however, is the moment when monkeys finally get to the content of the crate.
At the first glance, one can see utter chaos. Animals rushing to grab fruit as fast as they can, and fleeing the scene just as quickly. Only a few seconds later the dust settles, as all animals are busy feasting.
When I looked at comments under a similar video on Instagram, people were noticing same things: that all those monkeys rushed so quickly to get their share of food as if it had been scarce (it wasn’t). That some monkeys grabbed a few bananas at once, two in each hand and one in their mouth. That the aftermath of the whole event, with banana peels scattered all over the place, could be labeled as the most dangerous track in a Mario Kart game.
I admit I was initially under a similar impression. As a human species, we’re not that far away from those monkeys. Our primary instincts are very much alike. And we definitely love bananas just as much as making a mess around us (no? Only me? Okay).
But on the second, third, seventh view, I noticed something else. Something that wasn’t immediately obvious to me at all.
Of course, monkeys weren’t taught to wait in the line for their turn. They can’t possibly know whether there’s really enough bananas for everyone. And they definitely have no clue what happens to all those banana peels once lunch is over.
But that doesn’t matter.
What matters is that each and every monkey grabbed the exact amount of bananas they needed. Some monkeys grabbed two, others three. Once the feast was over, there were still bananas left for anyone to have an extra bite, yet nobody cared. Not a single monkey showed up to grab those extra bananas for themselves. Full stomach, happy heart, what else do you need.
This is what struck me.
As a human species, we invented various social constructs in order to make our lives somewhat more manageable. If the resource in question is abundant, waiting in line is no big deal. We figured out we should throw our waste into dedicated trash cans, so that our streets are reasonably clean and pleasant to walk on.
Yet somehow, among us, at any given time, there’s a tiny bunch of people who will always want more than others. Who will rush for those extra bananas no matter what. Who will always grab more than they need regardless of whether others can get their share first. We invented various types of massive-scale, industrial-grade greed. This greed manifests itself in various forms: we commonly know it as colonialism, corporatism, artificial scarcity, systemic racism, late-stage capitalism, you name it.
Even worse, some people will do whatever it takes to prevent others from getting their fair share. They will cut your hand if you dare to reach out. They will shush you if you dare to speak up against injustice.
We’re the worst kind of monkeys, I’m afraid.