Cucumber was a small, aloof wolf. For years she went about her business working to become the alpha female in her pack. She wanted little to do with humans. One December she became critically ill. She had a raging infection and her organs were close to shutting down. The vet said the only hope was exploratory surgery to find the cause but that she was too weak to survive it. We tried anyway. She essentially died and was revived during the four-hour operation. A section of her small intestine had rotted and decayed and had to be removed. Cucumber recovering after surgery | Earthfire Institute Somehow, miraculously, she survived. Hovering on the edge of life and death we brought her...
Close your eyes and think back. Can you remember a moment when your life was touched or transformed by a species other than your own? Maybe it was when you were a child, and you developed an unbreakable bond with a dog or cat—one that can only be described as love. Maybe it was when you were walking in the woods and suddenly came face to face with a beautiful doe and your eyes met and held for just a few heartbeats before she jumped gracefully away. Many of us have had these moments. And while they might have been brief, they alter us in powerful ways, reminding us that we are not alone. We are nested in an ever-widening web of connections—not just with our families, friends, and...
