Wolves and Warriors, to be exact. A new series on Animal Planet that premiered last night, and had me bawling on and off throughout.
Ok, some of that was my own issues, but some of it was getting slammed in the feels.
I don’t follow tv that closely. I only watch a few things, mostly on Food Network, so if my dear friend Jeremy Lucier hadn’t clued me in, I would never have found this. He is one of the vets out there rescuing wolves.
That’s what this show is about. Combat vets with PTSD trying to heal, and doing it in one of the most noble ways possible: rescuing wolves and wolf-dogs. This site describes it probably better than I can:
https://lockwoodarc.org/warriors-and-wolves/
It’s a perfect pairing. Wolves have been demonized for so long. Veterans have all kinds of stigma associated with them, which is probably even worse, because we’re so willing to pay lip service. “Thank you for all you’ve done”, “we appreciate you”, and so on, but the reality seldom matches the words. They are hung out to dry. Abandoned.
Man, I understand abandoned. I feel it every day, but then I think of how it must feel from that viewpoint…you’re over there, risking life and limb, for our freedom. To make the world a better, a safer, place for family and friends. You watch people you’ve bonded with die, often helpless to do anything. And when you think it’s done, that you’ve paid the debt and made a difference, to come home and find out the wife left you, because she couldn’t wait any longer, and she took the kids.
I’m not blaming the wife, mind you. I’m not blaming anyone. I’m throwing a viewpoint out there, of what it must feel like. The premier episode covers one vet who went through this, and it’s proof that between every him vs her, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. He has anger issues, he doesn’t recognize when he’s going beyond boundaries, because all he wants is to see his kids. On the flip side, she freaks out, she pushes him further away, because all she wants to to protect her kids. His story is touching and a learning tool about breakdowns in communication.
I also look at it this way…if this vet were truly a bad guy, the wolves wouldn’t accept him. We all know animals are the best judge of character, and they do accept him. The vet needs to learn, but first he needs to heal, and a wolf pack, along with other vets in similar circumstances are ideal, because one has already been down that road and one is nonjudgmental.
Jeremy with one of the rescued. Hell, Jeremy is also rescued, in a way.
Check this show out, and learn something. And feel something. Feel a lot of somethings. The premier is two-fold; besides the new vet, there is also the story of Sadira, a grey wolf rescued from an illegal breeder. Everything they do is to strengthen her, and if her trip to the doc doesn’t wring some tears out of you, you have no heart at all.
Remember always: whether you think we evolved, or were created, or something in between, we did not get to our level of thinking to rule the earth and its inhabitants. We are meant to be its caretakers. We should be protecting and helping each other, and in return, the earth, and her other residents will do the same. We are all responsible to each other. We must all protect, and work together. We must teach wherever we can, with actions, not words.
They are not our pets. They are our wards, and they are our guardians.
azbaelus 