Saturday, February 4

Long time, no blog

Well it has been a very long time since I have blogged. Above all else, what I truly feel now is . . . disconnected from my own life.  I have been moving around (literally . . . I moved from my home of 12 years in Seattle to the Big Island of Hawaii in November), doing things (surfing, SCUBA-diving, swimming, snorkeling, hiking with the dogs . . . sounds great doesn't it?),  and trying to just manage most of the time.  And yet, I feel very disconnected from all of this.  And so, I write.

A lot has happened since the big India adventure in 2010.  Rather than rehash all the ups and downs of life in the interim, I will simply start with today:

I saw the Grateful Dead, in concert, and danced about 15 feet away from the stage here in Hawaii beneath clear blue skies.  Yes, in 2012.

Ok, so it wasn't exactly the Grateful Dead.  But it was as close as I'm going to come!  The official name of the group is The David Nelson Band, but, come on, the guy is famous because he played with Jerry Garcia.

I danced.  I watched people.  I thought about who I wanted to be.  I imagined what it might feel like to have some of the things I think I want.  I looked at my partner Karl, really looked at him.  I was connected.  I was present.  I participated in my own life and I knew it while it was happening. Consciousness. 

Then, the moment ended, the band went on break, we came home, fed the dogs, showered, made dinner and watched the end of Rambo 3.  And just like that, I was disconnected.

But in that period of time, when I was present and available to myself and to others, I decided to blog because nothing helps me remain connected so much as putting pen to paper, or, in this case, fingers to keyboard.  So, lovely readers if there are any of you remaining, you may look forward to further discussion of this issue of trying to remain present and connected for our own lives.  I hope you'll share your thoughts and experiences as I share mine.

Cheers for now :-)

Abigail

Friday, August 6

The Beautiful People of the VSPCA

When good things are happening for animals, you can bet that compassionate and hard-working people are behind it.  The people who work at the VSPCA are committed to making all the animals at the shelter happy and comfortable.  Not only that but they have fun while they are doing it! 

For many of these folks, working at the shelter is a terrific opportunity to have a job.  For the women in particular, the VSPCA offers perhaps their first employment outside the home.  

The happy, smiling faces of these beautiful greeted me every day.  Before I left India I persuaded almost everyone to let me take his or her picture.  I think these photos capture the essense of love and joy that emanates from each of these beautiful people.  

I will be updating this post with the names as Sarada and Raj send them to me.  I have included as many names as I can.

Pradeep, the founder of VSPCA has saved thousands of animals
Sarada, the shelter manager for the small animals pictured here with her favorite "Blackie"
Raj, the shelter manager for the large animals
Malika, Pradeep's wife, whose home is overflowing with the animals she has saved
Raju works in the office and definitely enjoys life!
Virender also works in the office and has way too much fun!
All over the shelter are beautiful quotations painted on the walls.  I love this one:
Chenna, who did not want his picture taken.  He helped me give lots of dog baths!

One of the veterinarians, gently giving vitamins to a guinea pig

The best cat-catcher at the shelter!
































Back to work: