I think in rescue, you have to be very clear in what you are doing and why you are doing it.
sounds simple but it is not. it is so very easy to get lost in other stuff...people, politics, problems...the 3 p's of pitfalls to rescue priorities.
the animals here are the bouncing balls...ever moving, changing directions...trying to keep our collective eyes on 120 busily bouncing balls can easily make us all dizzy. that is why it is critical to have them divided up into areas with one or two sets of very keen eyes on each group of animals...and ultimately on each individual animal in our care...less balls to watch means more in terms of consistency, commitment and responsibility. with the staffing shortages over the past 3 months..I really felt like we were running half blind...everyone switching around to cover all animal areas. covering the barn meant taking from the mp guys, covering the mp shortage meant stealing human hours away from the house. it has affected everyone here. I am glad this part of our rescue history is over and done and we can move forward again.
but it is also is about the myriad of problems we have dealt with in the past few months...water, septic, electrical, financial....all making life here more challenging, more difficult, more unpredictable...it is sometimes so hard to focus when the basic structures we rely on are flipping around up in the air.
anyway...I do want to apologise to the animals here that during these past few months, my head has most times been elsewhere.. but I also want to thank the people around me for two things...firstly for chipping in, rolling up your sleeves and helping us when things really totally sucked. and also for something you may not be aware of....keeping politics out of saints.
nothing will bring a rescue down faster than politics and humans jockeying for power positioning. that is when the humans are here for themselves and not so much for the animals in their care.
you know we do not always get along here, we are not always in agreement about everything. we do not always think along the same lines...except the one thing we all have in common is a deep and consuming commitment to the best interests of our animals. we can survive the really hard times because we have forged a very strong line to keep our animals happy and well. each link in the chain keeps our purpose safely in place...it is a gift.
I can finally see the light at the end of this recent dark tunnel that seemed like it would never end and I know we are getting there because each and every one of us truly cares.
good on us for keeping the primary focus on our bouncing beasts..it's been hard but thank god! we are almost there!
No wonder the animals are all so happy - the staff and volunteers who care for them do exactly that - "care" - you guys are all truly amazing. And thanks for letting us share in your battles - I so wish I had the money to give to you for the septic field - or the barn camera - maybe next year one of us will win the lottery for S.A.I.N.T.S. - in the meantime - you are all awesome!