my dad once said.."i think those woman who devote their lives and everything they have to helping animals, have a big hole they are trying to fill." at the time, he was in his 80's, deteriorating physically and mentally and losing his filters. my dad was actually a pretty good man, he did all kinds of important things..walked in Selma for the rights of others, protested in Washington, the bombs hitting Hanoi harbor, advocated for the rights of women to be clergy, and a gay man to be our church choir master.
he just did not get my animal thing (mostly because he was not an animal person) and it worried him.
in all honesty my dad's words were not as jerky as they sound. in almost 20 years of rescue..i have met many who are trying to fill up a hole. and the thing is, they will never succeed because rescue is a bottomless pit of fulfilling a never ending supply of animals needs. good luck filling yourself up inside a black hole.
i think the ones who are successful are the ones made with an artisian well that constantly spews forth a never ending supply of giving to animals because the well is so very full.
i whine constantly about my life being so full....a family that i adore, a job that i love, passionate volunteer work to keep me busy and out of trouble...who could ask for anything more?
i used to wish that i could be an artist, a musician, a poet to express the full fullness in living the gift of being. i wanted to find a way to share the things that have so greatly enhanced my life...love, compassion, respect, loyalty. i also wanted to meet and overcome challenges because my basic belief has always been that if we stand true...what is right and good can actually win.
it was rescue that gave me the canvas to paint the picture i wanted to see. it was the animals that became the notes to a beautiful song about the possibility of animals living free and in peace. and it was the good people that i meet who became the connections between words in the poem of sharing and caring and helping others in need.
at the time when i originally heard my fathers words..i thought, "gee thanks dad for thinking so highly of me."
now, a dozen years later i think..."gee, thanks dad for the heads up warning, it has kept rescue and myself and life in perspective and helped keeping me safe and happy for all of these years."
what a precious gift to be able to whine that my cup in life is sometimes too full!
Yes, so blessed with a full life well.... Now if you could only have that overflowing work with the real well at Saints you'd be having body nourishing baths every night!!!