Two Wolves

Larry and Alanna walking to the Sanctuary

A very LARGE pig

This goat lost a leg being hog tied


It's Monday, but it is still the weekend in this household.

Larry took four days off, today being the last one. Alanna has been thrilled to have both her grandparents home for four days, and it helps ME out a bit as I have been her caregiver during the day when he is working.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my grandchildren. But I am so thankful that Larry and I never did have a child together in our later years, 'cause simply, I don't have the energy for 24/7 kids, and man, it is very hard to make art. But we DO manage to have a lot of fun and we are full of tons of love and adventure, and that is what counts anyway.

One of our more interesting adventures this weekend was to visit the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary, beautifully nested in the mountains of the Catskills in Willow. We wandered around the sanctuary for hours, in and out of fields and pens that held piggies (LARGE and small..the small not being so small either) goats, sheep, and chickens. Turkeys wandered the grounds looking for a rub down. Annie, the little goat kid, doesn't like to be in with the other goats, so she too runs around loose with the volunteers and visitors on the farm, testing out her little horns on innocent kids like Alanna, who was in shock the first time she was butted right off the picnic table bench. But like a friend on Facebook said, "she was left with marks, but no scars" as Alanna ended up befriending the little goat and playing with her, which included a few more butts.....

Surprisingly many of the rescues are out of New York City- from slaughterhouses, from animals found wandering the street...deserted by people who no longer can handle the cute little piggy or chickie they brought home after a bout of drunkenness, insanity, stupidity, or a little of bit of each. Some of the animals were missing limbs from being found hog-tied, one of the roosters had a broken leg. Some were not wanted, like the Silkie chicken, whose deformed feet made him undesirable as a pet or to use for anything but slaughter.

It was a visit that taught us about the mistreatment of so many animals, and I hope that it instilled compassion for animals in Alanna. Children have no idea where their food comes from, how it gets from farm to table, and I hope that by her seeing, petting, and giving love to these animals will make her more aware of what is right and wrong in the treatment of animals and people...

To conclude, this is one of the more profound forwards in my email this weekend. It says it all. Called TWO WOLVES:

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside all people.

He said, ‘My son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.’

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: ‘Which wolf wins?

The old Cherokee simply replied, ‘The one you feed.’

Patti O

Comments

Unknown said…
i love that story - and what a wonderful place... sounds like a great adventure for me and baby jake some day!
Andrea said…
I'm convinced that how one treats either children or animals shows one's true character. Of course, there are exceptions (even Hitler had a dog), but for the most part, it's true. Plus, I've learned that the Cherokee story is SO true!
-A

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