Action for Animals Austin

What great advise and inspiration in these posts - I feel better now too - and I wasn't even feeling down. :)

Timothy, you are not alone! But you are a very special powerful human being and you are right, all of us are here for a reason, I truly feel it is my life's calling to care about animals and keep their plight in the forefront, we all are in the same boat. I like to think of us as the trailblazers similar to the outcasts that dared to stand up for women's rights, or those that wanted to free the slaves, civil rights, etc. We are still the minority working at the front of the storm. It can be daunting and heartbreaking facing the atrocities that happen to helpless animals day after day, but it helps me to look at all the progress we've made in the movement also. Just the other day I posted on my facebook page some positive things, like the fact that Austin has committed to becoming a "no-kill" city for homeless pets, is rebuilding the town lake animal shelter, and the fact that the canadian seal slaughter is coming to an end soon as noone is willing to buy the pelts anymore. We have made tremendous strides in the fight for animal rights and we need to take time to remind ourselves that. Many days it seems we feel powerless and there is abuse everywhere we turn but there is light also and its only because of us, we can never give up. Everything you have done and continue to do makes a difference. One of my favorites quotes (from Taoism)

"A single drop of water in a river may not know how powerful it is, but it is part of the current none the less" 

sometimes we feel like what we do doesn't matter but it does, we all matter,

don't be afraid to take a break too, tune it out for a while, surround yourself with things that make you feel good, refresh yourself, hang out with positive people and don't feel guilty for taking a break, we can't be good in the battle without taking care of ourselves first.

Keep it up!!! lots of vegan love :)

Hopelessness is not surprising since animal abuse is everywhere and can appear to be so huge that we feel we'll never change anything. Well, we can and we are changing Austin, bit by bit, everytime we do a demo or write a letter that gets published. 

You, Timothy, influence your friends and family, just by being an example. We all have the same stories. Years ago, after being being around me a few hours in a 2 week period, a friend of a friend went vegan. I was a bit shocked since I had barely said anything. I have more stories, and so do you and Chris and Errol, and everyone else on this website. The victories are there and that is where I prefer to look.

Don't forget, you are one of our victories. When you came to AFA, you were still eating meat but after a few months, you stopped, and now you are vegan.

Others are changing the world, bit by bit. That's partly why I read the headlines everyday, several times. Sure the bad news is there but so is the good news. You just have to go looking for it.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, I might advise:

• take up meditation. It clears my mind.
• physical exercise like running, lifting weights, swimming laps. You would not believe how running helps me de-stress!!! Amazing cure!!!
• read Martin Luther King Jr's speeches. I find his words so inspiring that I'm roaring to go change the world after reading him.
• take a break. Don't read or watch anything that exposes you to animal suffering for a whole day, whole week, or whole month. Spend the time relaxing, destressing and recharging. Eat very well, sleep a healthy amount of time, visit with friends (but no shop talk), read a great book.

Ok, hope this helps. Be well, Timothy.

Good stuff, guys!  Thanks for commenting!!! ;)

I can relate, believe me.  I think this is why so many activists burn out.  It's easy to have lots of drive and energy when you first learn about an issue and commit to helping be part of the solution.  The longer you are part of a cause, the more you learn about the massive scope of the problem and the resistance to change that grips even the people close to you.  It's a viscious cycle -- the more you know, the better an activist you can be, but also the more hopeless the cause seems.

It makes me want to quit all the time.  Here is something that keeps me on track:

"If your life's work can be accomplished in your lifetime, you're not thinking big enough."

That's pretty much it.  I just try to remember that I am part of something much larger than myself, and that my role is to just keep talking, keep doing, and do my part to keep the movement alive.  Maybe some younger people that are new to this whole thing will be inspired by your example and they will be the ones to finish what you started.

All I know is that I will not put myself in the position of regretting not having spoken up.  I try to think about what I would have done had I lived in pre-Civil War America.  Would I have recognized that slavery was wrong?  Would I have had the courage and stamina to work towards ending it, even though it seemed like nothing I did or said mattered?  I'll never know for sure -- I wasn't alive then.  But I am alive now, so I make the choice to speak up for those who have no voice -- animals and people -- no matter how futile it seems some days.

Timothy - you need to take care of yourself - You aren't helping the animals if you are miserable and anxious. I think as activists we have to show that even though we care, being an activist doesn't mean you are consumed by it.  (I know you are just venting here to us in a 'safe' space - I am just talking in general)

I try really hard to not watch videos or read too much about abuse.  I do the best I can and I know I cannot change the world.  I can only influence one person at a time - and if one person changes even a little I feel like I have accomplished something great.

I feel frustrated that people that I know care about these issues don't take any action.   Think about how much worse you would feel if you knew abuse and horrors were happening and you did nothing.  I applaud you and everyone that DOES something - You are such an asset to us and the animals!!!