Saturday, November 08, 2014

WOLF

For some unknown reason I've always had a soft spot for wolves. Even back in the UK I had a couple of very nice ceramic wolf ornaments displayed in a prominent position in our living room - before a fire ate everything we owned, that is. I still have a wolf ornament where I can easily see it each day, often give it a pat on the head. Anyway, husband sent me this video just before I fell sick from the anti-bios. It's lovely - do take a look:





Then I remembered that, back in 2009 I'd prepared a relevant short post for a second blog I once started, supposedly for bits of our travel news. I've re-claimed that post, copied it here :

Wednesday ~ Western New Mexico - Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary and El Morro

Our visit to Wild Spirit was a lovely experience. We were given a tour by a very knowledgeable young man who had come to work at the Sanctuary from Boston last August, for 2 months only, loved the job so much, fell in love with New Mexico, and is still here. The sanctuary is manned by volunteers who are provided with very basic lodging. As it is located a couple of hours' drive from the nearest town of any size, volunteers have to be dedicated to the job and not afraid of hard work. At present the sanctuary houses 53 wolves, and wolf-dogs, rescued from abuse, transferred from zoos which had to close, and from private owners who could no longer cope.

Photos of the wolves are from both cameras, mine and my husband's (his are better!)















On the way back from Wild Spirit we took a short detour to see El Morro - an enormous cliff, a National Monument. The cliff stands on the old route taken by early Spanish explorers and soldiers, as well as in the lands previously occupied by early Native tribes, Anasazi, Pueblo and others. The walls of the cliff bear petroglyphs and engraved messages dating from around 1100, through the 1600s right up to the early 20th century, when El Morro, including Inscription Rock, was made a National Monument












18 comments:

Sonny G said...


Loved that video. Just more proving that MAN trying to fix nature is a mistake. Nature is quite capible of manageing itself- as it always has, till we step in and try to Fix things.
as we saw in the video, Mother Nature doesnt need us, we need her.
Native americans knew how to live in this land and benefit from it.
I have had a tiny wolf sculpture done in steel on my desk for 11 years, so when I saw the name of your post I knew it would be a great one, and it is..
thanks Annie and howl on~!

mike said...

Goodness...can't view the video...the howling at the start completely disoriented my GiGi. I suppose she thought the wolves were behind her or something...LOL. A frightening, but exciting start to her day.

I saw a PBS "Nature" program about the evolution of wolves to dogs. Turns-out it can occur after only a couple of generations. The resultant dogs completely changed color and physical characteristics.
"From Wolf to Dog"
"The Speed of Change" (a segment about five minutes in length):
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/lessons/from-wolf-to-dog/video-segments-dogs-that-changed-the-world/4800/

I have a large ceramic tile with a wolf scene in various colors of glaze, which is very nice...found in a thrift store in Ventura, CA, that I've had for years. I guesstimate that it's circa 1920s or 30s. It has a lean-to affixed to the back, much like a picture frame for displaying on a counter. One of my treasures.

Wolves have made a return in some parts of the USA, but some species and subspecies have vanished forever, much like other life-forms that we've managed to extinguish, because they got in the way of human development or were too tasty.

Nice photos!

Twilight said...

Sonny ~ Glad you enjoyed it!
We should all howl on - in unison until the Powers That Be take notice.
;-)

Twilight said...

mike ~ Awww - poor wee GiGi! You could mute the video and just watch the images though. :-)

There were also some wolf-dogs at the Wild Spirit Refuge, as I recall. Very good looking dogs too they were, but the guide warned that they can retain much wildness in their blood.

Your wolf tile sounds delightful!

Yes, we've given the death penalty to far too many species, including some varieties of wolf - we are definitely far worse predators than they ever were.

Sonny G said...


aww:)
my 3 little pom girls popped their heads up and looked around when they heard the howling, then right back to sleep..
what breed is GiGi, Mike?
I'll go look on netflix to see if that PBS show is available.

I agree we should gather and howl with such a force it could not be ignored nor silenced, Annie.

mike (again) said...

Sonny - She's a Yorkie. She and Twilight share province...LOL.

anyjazz said...

That was a very pleasant side trip. We should do more of those.

Twilight said...

anyjazz ~ It was one of those lucky finds, discovered via a visitor magazine found in a motel room - it always pays to give those a thorough going over for hidden gems. :-)
And "here's to the next time"!

LB said...

Twilight ~ Been busy but plan on watching the video. Thanks.:)

Kind of interesting how you have a special connection to wolves. I'm sure you've heard of 'spirit animals' or 'animal guides'?

The following description kind of fits your Aquarius Sun, Aries Moon, Cancer Ascendant:

"The wolf offers some of the most striking animal meanings in the realm of spirit animals. The power of the wolf brings forth instinct, intelligence, appetite for freedom, and awareness of the importance of social connections. This animal can also symbolize fear of being threatened and lack of trust. When the wolf shows up in your life, pay attention to what your intuition is telling you." http://www.spiritanimal.info/wolf-spirit-animal/

For me it's always been horses and deer.:) A shamanic practitioner once journeyed on my behalf and came back with gazelle for me. And squirrel for the hubby - hehe.

Twilight said...

LB ~ I remember reading about animal guides, totems, or whatever, a long time ago. I had suspected it was just another way of categorising groups of personalities - which, in a way it is, but it's a very pleasant way.

Personal "freedom" has always been my most treasured instinct - and any threat to that can make me bare my teeth....lol!

I shall be careful not to alarm your beautiful gazelle :-). Your husband's squirrel is a tricky little cuss - I love to watch their intelligent creativity in trying to access our bird feeders in the back yard. They simply never give up!

mike (again) said...

Twilight, have you been following "The Paradise"? How did Weston find-out that Moray and Fenton were plotting against him and Katherine to buy The Paradise? I've been watching faithfully, but that segment of Westin's discovery of betrayal by Moray went by me. The season finale and last episode conclusion to the entire program is next Sunday! BBC said there won't be a season 3...sob.

Feeling better bit by bit?

mike (again) said...

"The Size Of Space As Depicted Here Is Truly Mind-Blowing"

http://www.spiritscienceandmetaphysics.com/the-size-of-space-as-depicted-here-is-truly-mind-blowing/

Twilight said...

mike ~ Yes we missed last Sunday's 'cos I was feeling so unwell, but caught up last night via Roku, then watched tonight's episode earlier.
I think Fenton double-crossed Moray and went directly to Weston and told all (at least that's what I assumed - it wasn't made at all clear.)

Didn't realise there was only one more episode to go. They'll have to get a move on to tie it all up!

Thanks, yes, slowly improving, but I do still feel much more tired than I do normally. It'll take a little more time to get right back to where I started, I think. Dang anti-bios have possibly left debris around. I am drinking lots of water to clear it out as well as a daily pro-biotic.

I shall watch the video in the morning - thank you for the link.
:-)

Twilight said...

mike ~ What a superb set of illustrations that is - and what gob-smackingness! WOW!!!!

mike (again) said...

Yes...I certainly understand the abstract concept of infinity, but when I see something like this (that tiny slice next to the Moon), it brings it home...and slightly unnerves me...LOL. The relative sizes of planets and suns is impressive, too. There may be countless other universes, too, if the new cosmology is correct...as if our very own infinite universe wasn't enough!

R J Adams said...

I, too, have a fascination for wolves. Last winter a young male came out of the and spent ten minutes leaping up to snatch at rotten apples still hanging from one of our trees. A truly amazing sight.

R J Adams said...

Sorry, that should have been...came out of the forest...

Twilight said...

RJ Adams ~ Oh! that must have been a quite wonderful sight.

The most we've ever seen from our back yard are some wild turkeys and very occasionally a deer - but neither lately.