So, I trust we all had fun with our animal friends a week or so ago?

[Hey Asgardians, long time no see. Jacob smiles, looking amused in his new sweater that was given to him, along with six other sets of winter clothing, due to the fact that he was nice to a sheep. Asgard you sure do surprise him sometimes.]

I've even seen a few sticking around...which makes me wonder, are they appreciated? Animals in human lives, I mean. I know most children nowadays want a cat or dog to keep them company, but parents would probably shirk at the thought of keeping a more unusual animal, like a snake or raccoon.

Which is interesting really...in Egyptian times, animals were great symbols of powerful deities who shaped the world they lived in. Most of them even had animal heads- Anubis, god of the dead and embalming, had the head of a black jackal. Thoth, god of writing and knowledge, had the head of an ibis, which is a type of bird. Horus, the god with the head of a hawk, Bastet, a protective goddess with the head of a cat...I could go on and on.

But it is interesting how animals, on my world, are not held as sacredly as they were back then- except for examples like the Hindu treating the cow with reverence and other such cases, most people would not look at an animal and think "that is something I need to pay respect to."

How is it in your worlds, I wonder? Are some animals held in higher respect than others? And for what reason? I know that even some worlds have mythical creatures like dragons and unicorns...are those even considered special in a place in which a person sees them in their regular habitat.

[A pause, as his smile widens.]

I'm curious, Asgard.