Sloths somehow pulled it off.
Where nature is cruel in its random disasters and diseases, it can be equally cruel in its allocation of gifts and talents — or so it seems.
If you were reborn as a sloth, you’d curse your fate and wonder, “What did I do in my previous life to deserve this?”
Sloths have no physical armor. They have no deterrent weapons: horns or chemical sprays. They can’t kick.
Their bite is weak. They have claws but no speed or power to use them. They suck at fighting. When it comes to athleticism, they are nature’s bench warmer. They’re an anomaly of evolution and the only animal named after one of the seven deadly sins.
Did I mention they are slow? The fastest man in the world can run the mile in 3 minutes 43 seconds. A sloth can blaze that race in a mere 6.6 hours.
But really — how in the hell are sloths still alive?
Sloths survived because they bumbled their way to a region with relatively few predators. Their main predator, jaguars, are on the ground.
Their other predators, large hawks, face an interesting visual dilemma. They see the world like a high-detail painting. They fixate their gaze on the scenery, watching it in all of its stillness, waiting for something to move and catch their eye.
But because sloths move so slow, they don’t get noticed by hawks. And even further, their lack of mobility allows green algae to grow on their back, giving them camouflage.
Sloths somehow turned a flaw into a strength. Although I still don’t know why they climb down the tree to poop (they really do). Perhaps they just have good manners.
Sloths are bizarrely relatable to everyday life. So many people, who you knew in high school, who were strikingly average, have slid into high-level positions. Nothing on the paper said they would achieve such great heights. Their test scores were mediocre. They weren’t charismatic. Yet here they are, a boss of people.
Just as the seemingly low-talent sloth has the ability to succeed when so many gifted animals get devoured, we each have our own unique combination of gifts, a DNA of success waiting to be revealed. Sometimes, like a sloth, you just need to be patient and hang on.
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—Sean🤜🤛
Great piece! Sloths are my very favorite animal; one of my TV streaming accounts is called “sloth life”. As recent retiree, I emulate the majestic sloth at every opportunity. Except for the whole “climbing out of a tree to poop” part.
Are you aware of the Sloth Conservation Foundation? You can send a donation and “adopt “ a sloth through a rescue/conservation entity. slothconservation@gmail.com If you are interested.(I’m not affiliated with them in any way, so I don’t mean this to sound like a “pitch”). I’m looking forward to more of “Relax and Read”. I used to read you on Quora a lot, back in the day.
Drema Stringer
Love love love your articles!!!