I know of a place where hope and despair coincide, a place where great joy is found only amidst great sorrow, a place where the joys of new life and the painful realities of death are realized simultaneously, a place where other people's "trash" turns into other people's treasure. The "trash", of course, being the hundreds of beaten animals that wind up here every year, souls battered and bruised by the wretched workings of mankind.
There is no shortage of sad stories here. Every animal has a tale, some more heartbreaking than others but, I assure you, they are all heartbreaking, they are all unique. I have watched these sad stories manifest themselves right before my very eyes.
I have watched a puppy take his final breath of life after having been thrown out of a moving car by some jerk that couldn't care less. I have seen cats permanently scarred by the chemical burns their twisted owners imparted on them for laughs. I have seen a beautiful litter of yellow labrador puppies brought in after they were left in a ditch to die. I have seen pneumonia kill an entire litter of kittens one by one. They spent their few weeks of life suffering among their dying brothers and sisters. I have seen bunnies dropped off here, by the families that could no longer take care of them, starve to death because they were just too depressed.
There is no shortage of oddities here either. There are dogs with three legs and cats with one eyeball. I have been nipped at and swatted by bitter dogs and cats that have lost all respect for man, but I don't blame them. With every sad story I hear I, too, lose a little more respect for mankind.
But, as sad as it sounds, the animals found here are the lucky ones. They are still alive. There are hundreds of other animals that were not as fortunate, yet, there are more happy things here than sad. There are dogs that never stop wagging their tails. Despite their dark pasts, they never cease to be happy. There are puppies playing on the front lawn assaulting their brothers and sisters in wrestling matches. There are cats that fall asleep in your lap, purring to their heart's content.
This is a beautiful place, despite its doleful appearance. This place breaks my heart but fulfills some empty part of me. I come here to love the animals that others deemed unworthy of living. I love these animals. I love this place.