The autumn equinox has arrived, leaves are turning color and summer has officially come to a close. We, for one, are thankful for the cooler temperatures. It’s been a buggy steamy sauna of a summer and we’re just grateful to report that no one melted. We watched all the baby deer born in the spring growing up, spots fading and antlers appearing. The rabbits hippity hopped across the field while muskrats glided across the pond. Our old friend the woodchuck found a mate and could be seen toddling across the front lawn every morning, creating little mischief unlike our family of raccoons who took up residence in the barn. They’re so comfortable around us now that they drive the Kubota up and down the barn aisle while we feed the horses. One clever bandit discovered the bird feeder and made a point to empty it every night. The cats, who love to watch the birds at the feeder, could not have been more pleased with the additional entertainment value of our resourceful, determined, and successful ring-tailed bird seed thief.
This year we had not one but three families of geese. They divided their time between the pond and paddocks, with tiny fuzzy goslings running happily amongst the grazing horses. One day, a sly red fox came out of the woodland on the hunt, careful to keep hidden as he maneuvered towards the goslings. Alert to his presence, the mother goose herded her noisy clan to the center of the pond while the father goose commenced a mighty defense. With wings spread and flapping, he stood guard at the edge of the pond honking fiercely and splashing the fox with water. The fox sprang back and forth around the water’s edge, took a soaking and finally slunk back towards the woods in search of easier quarry.
The late summer days saw the blossoming of pink petals across the surface of our lily pond. The name of our sanctuary was selected because of what the water lily – or lotus – represents. The seed starts at the muddy bottom of a pond and has to work its way up through the dark waters until it reaches the surface and blossoms. This journey out of the darkness and into the light is why the lotus is so revered in Eastern philosophical traditions as a metaphor for enlightenment. We also consider the water lily to be a beautiful symbol of the healing journey. Our mission as an animal rescue is to bring people, animals and nature together in healing partnership. Many of the animals that arrive at the sanctuary are in need of physical and emotional healing, but also possess their own gifts to offer the world. We’ve witnessed people healing animals; animals healing people, and the healing effects of nature on everyone. We seek to cultivate the interconnectedness of all life, recognizing that ultimately, we are all one.