I tried to put myself in their place, an incredible place in time when after a lifetime spent in darkness and pain, a door and windows magically open and I was to see the yellow sun, the green grass and a blue sky for the first time in 30 years. To see an open expanse that was mine to traverse at will after years spent behind bars in the cold steel of cages, entirely at the mercy of another being, a being that did not understand, care or care to know what this life meant to me. They cared only to know what I might contribute to theirs.
To at first stand in fearful wonder, not daring to trust this momentous opportunity. To disbelieve and question the validity of the open door before me, to reach but not quite dare to cross, not yet able to fathom the enormous and joyous change that had just occurred in my life, unbidden, unexpected, unbelievable. Miraculous.
All this plays out in clear and exquisite poetry across their faces. So does the instantaneous onset of joy and the desire to share and celebrate with their fellow retirees. It's all there for anyone with the eyes and heart to see.
When I returned to myself I found my heart opened and an overwhelming sense of hope. It is so easy to become jaded and cynical and to denounce the human race for all our evil doings and sad failings. Then I see something like this, and realize the immense effort and persistence that lay behind this one little moment in time when a return to some measure of freedom was given by the human heart that understood what it meant. No wonder everyone's crying. Including me.
Video: HSUS
Watch what happens at about 1:25....
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