the ability to keep moving onwards and to keep ones wheels free from being stuck forever in the same ruts is something i think animals understand instinctually.
look at someone like jesse...this dog does have some unresolved trust issues for some reason that made him unpredictable at predictable times which is why he came in with a cage muzzle. he wanted to bite children and he wanted to bite people that he did not know very well.
he is getting over this because saints is a totally different experience for him with totally different ways of getting along. so while he does have a deep abiding hatred of niko who hates him equally back...he is more trustful of unknown humans because there are so many unknown humans around here on any given day, that he had no choice but to just chill out and relax. everyone else is enjoying them...so hey...maybe they are ok.
hating niko has nothing to do with anything except for whatever is bugging both jesse and niko about each other. they don't extend it out to everyone else. jesse is finally "getting" butch..ok so he makes these weird snorting noises and he doesn't really look like a dog should. while he is different than jesse has seen before...he is more of an item of interest now than any kind of threat. jesse now wants to figure him out but is not afraid of his "difference" any more.
jess quite likes timmy...no question that timmy is a normal kind of dog and timmy is easy going so hey...new friendship is on its way.
this is the cool thing about jess..he lets go of the past. his previous life with his family is gone so each day now is a new adventure to learn how to live well today.
ok, so he doesn't like niko...well that is just a fact...lots of beings on this earth have strong personal dislikes but it doesn't have to turn into a war. so they live their lives separately here, each on their own side of the fence. it works well here (as long as some stupid human like me doesn't mess the whole separate life thing up by opening the wrong gate.)
the point tho is...that neither jesse or niko go looking to open the gate...they are content if the other just stays out of their personal space. maybe one day they will tolerate each other better, maybe one day they will be friends...but i doubt it. their natural dislinke of each other is pretty strong.
but having said that...lots of dogs here get into the occasional fight. they argue over something or they are just in a pissy mood. they get over it really quick..unstick their wheels from the angry rut and are back out there together looking for a good day or at least a good stick for a good tug of fun (not real) war.
we humans aren't like that...let someone hurt us or piss us off...and we become like niko and jesse...forever enemies. except we actively look for open gates instead of just being happy the gates are now closed.
when i left the previous shelter..the break up was hurtful, angry and highly emotional on all fronts. i put my heart and soul into that place as much as i do now here at saints. in the months that followed, there was the occasional skirmish..hurt feelings and anger take some time to disappear.
here we are almost 5 years later, we get along good again...they have done well...i have done well...we talk back and forth occasionally. they have visited my place, i have visited their place...both of us working in our own way doing basically the same thing which is helping animals the best that we can.
none of us spinning our wheels, stuck in a rut unable to move on. we built our wagons strong and true to move forward on a different path to where ever it is we are going.
i don't know if they and i learned this lesson so well from working with the animals...but i think we did. we see thousands of animals literally devastated by life move forward into something healthy and good. certainly if the animals can move past whatever their pain and trauma was...we should be able to do the same.
i look back on that time in my life as a time for reflection and change...i grew, they grew...is that not the way it is supposed to be?
niko and jesse are not human beings...they do not think and reason like we do. i suppose having a mortal enemy makes them feel strong and powerful. i think it also makes them a bit afraid. but fear in the animal kingdom serves a purpose, it hones the skills for them to survive. it taps into the core of the beast to be the best and to win at all costs if the enemy slips thru the gate.
thankfully humans have one thing that animals are not naturally born with...we have a code of ethics, manners, values...whatever you want to call them that respects property lines, especially ones visibly fenced. i waited for an invitation to visit the place where i once was so attached...i still Know and care deeply about some of the animals there...it was really nice to see them again. when i am visited here...they also see and know and care about some of the animals here that came along with me.
they are happy bothe the animals and i am doing well...i am happy that they and their animals are doing well. we share our frustrations over common and unique problems...we share what we have tried back and forth to.
but there is a fence between them and me...it is called rescue. they have their place and i have mine. and we do visit back and forth as friends with the same respect that visitors to another place that is not their own, naturally extend. they don't barge my gate and i don't barge theirs which is why we get along so well once again.
the past is the past...animals do not want it to color their future. they want peace and happiness, they want to move on and feel the sun on their face and be able to enjoy its warmth.
wagons ho little crippled ones...this morning i forgive you for pooping on my floor.