Great Things Take Time

Wow.  It has been over a month since I have posted last.  I am so sorry to all of those who follow faithfully and have been left in the lurches.  We are still here to fight another day, Sal and I.  At the end of the day that is all that really matters, right?  Surviving to see another sunrise!

There is so much for us to catch up on in the last four + weeks, assembling my thoughts and trying to figure out where to even begin is intimidating.  It makes me sad to not be able to write as often. Writing is therapeutic and lately I could sure use all the therapy I am able to get, but yet again life has gotten away from me.  It seems no matter how hard I try to get it back it continues to move further and further away.

As I write this blog, next to me is Marina.  She is a 5 year old "unadoptable" black cat we adopted along with her litter mate, "Calla" 4 years ago in January of 2009. Really quickly...when we adopted Calla and Marina we did so with the intention of adopting 2 bonded cats that could not be separated.  They were both black cats and Marina was terribly frightened, shy and did not like to be handled.  The rescue figured if she was still like this at already a year there was little hope of her being adoptable.  JACKPOT.  I wanted animals that no one else would otherwise want.  It took Calla a few days to adjust to our busy home but she did fine.  Marina on the other hand hid for the better part of a year.  She was 4 pounds and did not put on much weight on that first year.  She ate to survive and she hid.  I gave her as much comfort as she would allow and I gave her what any living thing needs...love and time.  Marina finally came around.  Although she is closest to me and will still mostly hide from anyone else she has proved to be an amazing companion cat who shares my pillow at bedtime every night and the dogs 20-25x her size do not even phase her.  She has found her comfort and security.  She generally is not around much during the day, but today she sits by my side as I type urging me to continue reminding me, "Great Things Take Time"

Now, getting back to why we are all here... Sal.  It has been a difficult 4 weeks.  Although the view of the doorway to his soul has been closed by one with the loss of his eye - is health has greatly improved by leaps and bounds.  His fur is turning white, he is grooming himself, any and all signs of his URI have finally gone and he is eating like the strong healthy cat he now is.  Although all of this is fabulous news it comes with a down side.  With Sal's increased strength and improved health his aggression is more pronounced and his attempts to frighten me off have more vigor.  Good thing for us both, I am not one to be easily intimidated.

For those of you who do not follow our facebook page, the last month or so has been an emotional roller coaster.  Sal had to undergo enucleation surgery, which is the removal of an eye.  The poor conditions of the Brooklyn ACC had become quite ill.  A month of steady antibiotics cleared his upper respiratory infection, but he ended up with an eye infection - and with him being feral it was near impossible to treat without compromising any trust I may have gained.  I had to choose the lesser of two evils - saving the eye (although likely not the sight) and pinning him down 4x a day fo treatment leading him to never trust me, or removal of the eye that was already damaged beyond repair visually and be able to continue to grow in our relationship, so naturally and with a lot of tears I chose to remove the eye.

We have had some amazing support in our short journey thus far and our fans keep growing!  We have over 530 now I continue to be humbled.  Everyone came together to help cover his $700+ Veterinary bill and we had a wonderful donor donate the wonderful crate condo Sal is currently occupying.  Life has been very difficult for Sal but after the rain - rainbows!  (That was on a card my mom bought me once when I was down and that always stuck with me) 

So, today is a new day and a busy one.  As I prepare myself for the unbearable heat that is shocking us here in NY all week...I have chickens and ducks that need cold fresh water that I must tend to... I remind myself -- instead of suffering or dying on the streets of Brooklyn or in the Brooklyn ACC alone, frightened, sick and now hot - my latest charge is nestled in his cat bed that was one of the generously donated items from a fan in the cool air conditioning never having to worry about a meal again - meowing at me as I sit here no doubt looking for the wet food portion of his day - I see a beautiful cat that I dreamt last night I got to hold.  Life may not be fabulous, but it sure beats the alternative...and we have to remember... "Never give up, great things take time"