God saw that it was good.

God spoke: “Earth, generate life! Every sort and kind:
        cattle and reptiles and wild animals—all kinds.”
    And there it was:
        wild animals of every kind,
    Cattle of all kinds, every sort of reptile and BUG.
        God saw that it was good.  Genesis 1: 24, 25 (The Message)

I know that I wrote about this subject last year, but I am in a new house and somehow opening my back door and seeing two of these creatures crawling around, reminded me.

In Oaxaca the rainy season begins at the end of May or beginning of June.  Along with the rainy season, comes the delicacy that many Oaxacans wait for all year--the Chicatanas or the flying ants.

Once the rains begin and the humidity and temperature are just right (as they are this week), the ants leave their nests.

If you leave your house in the early morning, the street is usually full of people stooping down to catch these
ants and putting them in plastic bags.  They are going to take the ants home, wash and grill them and grind them into a sauce after adding garlic, chili and salt.

If purchased in the market, the chicatanas cost about $45 a kilo (2.2 pounds).  That is why most people choose to go out into the street in their neighborhoods and catch their own.  Once the ants are ground into a sauce, the sauce is spread onto a tortilla and eaten.

I'm glad that God sees all creatures as good.  As for me, sometimes I wonder.

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