Dear Friends - Hello, again.
For those of you who do not know, this is a photo of Punch-kun, a Japanese macaque. He was born July 26, 2025 and was abandoned by his mother. My understanding is that he was born in the midst of a brutal heat-wave and his mother was probably close to dying. She did not have the resources, physical or otherwise, to mother him. The zoo stepped in and rescued this orphan, raised him until he could survive being rejoined with the macaque troop of the zoo. His saga has been riveting and popular in social media all over the world, capturing the attention of young and old alike, everyone cheering for this little guy, wishing that he will not only survive but thrive. Everyone wants to hug Punch! Me included.
There's more to this story than meets the eye though. What's fascinating about Punch is not only how he has brought together an otherwise completely divided and even fractured world - but how he has held up a mirror to that world. The secret, dare I say it, is that we all feel like Punch and although we may not realize it, we have all been behaving like Punch. We have a lot to learn from him. Let me illustrate what I mean.
When Punch was taken by the zoo-keepers and raised by hand, they gave him a plushie toy. This is standard operating procedure, so that the orphaned animal does not suffer from what psychologists have in the past called "Failure To Thrive". Touch is a physical, mental and emotional necessity. Without touch, without connection, animals and even human infants may actually die. If not die, their growth is significantly stunted. The plushie toy is mean to give the feeling of touch, the feeling of safety and connection, all of which stimulate growth hormones and provide psychological wellbeing. For a critical time, it works. Until, it doesn't.
When Punch was 7 months old, we began to notice that he would briefly leave his plushie-Mom behind, abandoned in a corner. By the time he was 9 months old, he had left her completely behind. It was a slow, back and forth process. Three steps forward, two steps back... When the newborn macaques of 2026 were coming along and Punch saw them being mothered, he remembered plushie-Mom and started seeking her comfort again for a brief time, but ultimately, this was unsatisfying. And this is where the story of Punch becomes truly fascinating and compelling for me because this is more than just a story of an underdog that we want to see succeed and have a happy ending. This is a story of incredible, wise emotional intelligence that I rarely see anywhere.
While Punch was leaving plushie-Mom behind, we see him looking other macaques in the eye, seeking connection. We also see him kissing other macaques on the cheek. This is not macaque behavior, this is human behavior. But again, he is seeking connection. We see him hugging. seeking connection. Making friends, making family... With the newborns, he is doing the same things: hugging, playing, looking them in the eye, being a protector and teacher, making connection. He understands that plushie-mom does not have warmth, she does not have hands that hold and soothe, she cannot see him, she cannot make a connection. Punch understands what connection is and that he not only wants to have it, he wants to create it for others.
Like everyone else, all over the world, I understand that our human history is standing (in crisis) at a critical Cross-roads. We have many man-made, deadly problems to solve or people will die and while these problems are very real, we also understand that sheer number of them is by design - we are even being told by certain political strategists; "there will be chaos all time"... The human impulse is to run away, to escape. And where do we escape to? Gaming, A.I. companions, fiction, movies, gardening, there are a millions of human escapes. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with hobbies, hobbies are recreative and necessary. But there is an enormous difference between having a hobby and engaging in escapism. Some of the most creative, brilliant people I know are investing many days a week, and a lot of creative intelligence into creating artificial WORLDS, when THIS ONE is in such desperate need! It is a grieving, horrific shame. And I wonder, when will we give up our plushie-Mom? When will we put her down, look each other in the eye and give each other a hug? When will we understand that our connection is rewarding in vital ways that no artificial thing could ever replace?
LJS
07/07/2026
