As I mentioned in a previous post, I can't even watch a Disney movie about animals without crying. When Hurricane Katrina struck last year, I blocked out any thought of the animals, just as I had done after 9/11. However, as much as I didn't want to know about their plight, I heard and saw snippets that deeply disturbed me. I decided that I couldn't be an ostrich anymore and even attempted to watch a PBS program on Katrina's Animal Rescue. I made it through about 6 minutes of the program and that was after I had turned the television off and on three times. I finally gave up.

But, seeing that much made it impossible for me to just sit at home and cry about the animals. So, I went down to New Orleans (actually Tylertown, Mississippi) twice to volunteer with the rescued animals. (see any posts having to do with "Tylertown" under "archives").

I felt a kinship with Mark Hawthorne, who wrote an essay, "Confessions of a Sensitive Activist" in the current issue of Satya magazine. In the essay, he writes that his experience of seeing suffering animals in India was his first realization that his "sensitive nature" was going to make his desire to help tough going. And, as you can read in the "about me" section, my trips to India have had the same effect on me.

 And as much as I can't take visual images of animal cruelty or abuse, I read (ok, scan) such stories every day. The more I know, the more I'm spurred into doing something to help.

And when the going gets tough, the antidote is Cute Overload;), which offers up a daily dose of cute pups, kitties, and all things adorable. Between the hilarious captions and the images, I am able to "re-set" my brain. The little guy pictured here comes from that site.