Rage – Thou Art Now My Constant Companion

Rage – Thou Art Now My Constant Companion

Please Tell Me That I Am Not Alone

Rage – Thou Art Now My Constant Companion – “Perhaps there is a Book of Life – in it will be found the name of “every” beautiful animal – bird – fish – and even a dragonfly named Lucy – who has ever graced the Earth. They will be remembered by the Universe because they were good and selfless. Missing from this book will be the name of every human”. I wrote this on a morning when I was feeling particularly repelled by human kind. By noon I had mellowed after seeing some good news stories. 

In 2007 I was just pleasantly ambling along through life – navigating most days with a mixture of enjoyment and frustration – enjoying my clients (I sell real estate) – going to the movies – reading books – loving my pets – doing renovation projects at my house – buying groceries – setting up yet another new exercise plan and wondering “what’s it all about Alfie”. As part of my business marketing plan I needed to hire a new website management company and – through a fluke – I met Paul MacKenzie of Ele-Host.

I went to Paul’s office with a colleague – noticed an elephant statue (I have always loved these magnificent animals) found out about The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya and “bam” my world started to change. Fast forward to 2015 and my life now has very few victims. I eat differently – I live differently – I spend my time on issues that matter to me. My decisions are conscious and deliberate. I often endure “compassion fatigue”  – there are images that are never far for my mind. This sweet little dog is one of them. Angel was her name and she froze to death – deliberately neck chained to a wall in winter – alone and afraid. What must she have felt? What was her crime? What kind of evil, twisted human filth did this to her? My fantasies of revenge are elaborate and without mercy.

  

I have learned about the ivory and rhino horn trade – endangered animals – factory farming –  dog fighting and puppy mills – the exotic hides and leather industries – canned animal hunting and inadequate animal protection laws globally. I have watched hundreds of hours of horrific videos of animal crushing – slaughterhouses – whaling – dolphin killing – baby elephant breaking torture – factory farming – dog and bull fighting – bear bile farms – live animal transport and deliberate animals abuse and torture – the fur industry and the vulgar trophy hunting business.

These vile “sport” hunters revel in killing – hoard their victims’ heads and blither on about “conservation” and “sustainability”. Their lack of intellectual sophistication is numbing. They are rich, entitled knobs who need to kill. A “real” hunt that involved trekking trough the wilderness – mosquitoes and bugs – blisters – sleeping on the ground and quite possibly being exposed to real danger would crumple them like discarded candy wrappers.  They are cowards – bullies – elitists – cruel and deranged. They know nothing of Nature – sentient beings – rights or justice. They are sad, ignorant braggarts and their total lack of enlightenment is proven by their selfish, ignorant actions.

Some of my friends no longer understand me and I have ceased to care. I know that everyone is entitled to their own opinions and choices but when the staggering cruelty associated with these choices is known – I have ceased to understand why people are so unwilling to change. I know that the global narrative about the planet and our treatment of our fellow sentient beings must change. I feel a strong obligation to make a difference and through my Blog – www.abeatingheart.ca – and my social media sites – I make a valuable contribution. I have a strong need to add some kindness and awareness to our often sad and broken world.

The other thing that has happened to me over the last eight years is a slow, smouldering  “rage” at the countless injustices in the world. There is not an easy, one size fits all fix – but if people would just wake up and get involved – our problems are curable. I like to look for solutions and think that creating awareness is the crucial, first step to change.

With this thought in mind I was looking through Facebook posts today – when I came across a video of a man in China force feeding plastic water bottles to a disabled camel to attract the attention of passers by. The goal – begging money from strangers and tourists. I felt a surge of anger go through my body that was instant and startling in its intensity. I wanted to hurt that man – to rip off his arms and beat him to a pulp.

This Camel’s Legs Were Deliberately Cut Off To Make Him A Better Betting Prop

In a sober second thought I know that it is a complex scenario. This man lives in poverty – begging in the street in a county that can spend BILLIONS of dollars on the mind-numbing idiocy that is The Olympics – but they won’t feed their poor. The man is doing what he needs to to survive – the victim is the camel. It is always the animal who pays for the sins and ignorance of humans. If you are an animal in China – you are already living in hell – and you probably welcome death. 

So I tucked my rage back in my pocket – made myself a yummie cup of tea – (answered the front door and received a beautiful bouquet of flowers from a happy client) – sat down and wrote this post. I know that my anger is always nearby. Most days it is moderated by a couple of “F-bomb – fuckwit” comments. Rude and childish to be sure – but I no longer care if I offend the self-righteous amongst us. 

I also know that when crimes are committed against defenceless living beings – with no justice for their suffering and frequent deaths – that the victims cannot be laid to rest. Accountability must be assigned against the perpetrators of animal cruelty and if my companion “rage” keeps me engaged in the struggle – then she is a welcome ally.