“Once you look deep into the eyes of an animal, and they into yours, there is a sacred trust, and an imperative to share what they are with fellow humans.” — Susan Eirich
I have witnessed thousands of transformative encounters between humans and wildlife at Earthfire but had it not been for a single encounter more than ten years ago with the man who lived with wolves, this place would never have come to be. At the time, I was a psychologist, biologist and educator with a passion for helping people see the world through the perspective of others. I’d had many transformative experiences seeing through the eyes of my fellow humans. But some of my deepest experiences had come from seeing the world through the eyes of animals with whom I had come to connect just as deeply.
In 1990, searching for insight into caring for my half-wolf, I met Jean Simpson. Jean had left veterinary school seeking a deeper connection with animals and found it literally making his home with a pack of wolves and then later training wild animals in a uniquely humane way for feature films. Here was a man, who like me, intimately felt the interconnectedness of all living things. Together, we felt, we could create a place to protect some of the beautiful creatures most in need of our help, and in the process inspire a richer sense of what it means to be alive.
We finally closed on land in Idaho in 1998, still fighting for permits. The native wildlife we wanted to rescue — bears, wolves cougars, etc. — were, and are, not popular here. We were shot at. Our dog was shot in the heart at Christmas, and Teton Totem the grizzly bear went into a depression because that dog was his best friend.
That first winter Jean lived in a 17-foot trailer as he began to build homes for the animals. It seems as if many of our projects were done in winter – Jean driving a backhoe, almost invisible in a blizzard; Jean on his hands and knees smoothing concrete for our cabin floor as ice crystals formed in the wet concrete (the imprints of the crystals are still there). We never put a finish on the floor as it doubles as an animal hospital.
While some responded to our passion with bullets, many more responded with enormous generosity. One day, without warning, the phone rang. A lovely woman wanted to give us a $10,000 grant! We put it towards building the Wildlife Garden so the animals could play and people would have a place to meet them. The Garden has become the center of an experience that has now been shared by so many, taking them on a journey of people, animals and the heart. We came to realize that Earthfire had not been built to simply expand our sense of connection to all living things, but to share this universally transformative experience with others.
Jean and I along with our staff continue to care for our animals and the people who come here to meet them and to meet themselves. We’ve hosted artists, spiritual elders, business leaders, media makers and non-profit changemakers. Each visitor deepens our belief that this place, and the chance encounter that created it, is part of the unfolding story of the transformation in humanity’s relationship to the community of life.
Earthfire Experience with Bob Tondro
Penelope Smith Retreat Comments
