It’s May and spring is finally here as I write from the Soma Gosala Sanctuary. Winter left with a whirlwind of very windy days but today is soft and sunny and the cows are delighted to be out on pasture. The grass is not quite long enough for good grazing but the herd is happy to be out again and so we let them be. There is much to be done mending fences, cleaning out the winter pack from the barn, building another addition to the hay barn, and caring for our older cows.
The Cows Foundation is also blossoming. We have a wonderful volunteer setting up a new donor and networking database which will greatly help us in sharing the important principles of the Foundation. We are looking for two directors to come on board; one to handle all the communications and general office management, and another to help with marketing and to foster expansion so the Foundation can grow in the number of cows we can support.
We are having first-hand experience these days with allowing cows to live out their full life. A very dear cow, Gopi, who is 17, is now unable to get up due to problems with her legs. We bring her water and food and turn her each day, doing our best to help her feel as comfortable as possible. We sit with her and love her and express our appreciation for her beautiful qualities. Her grandmother, Laxmi, inspired the founding of The Cows Foundation. Her mother, Vedi, carried on Laxmi’s great gentleness and strength, and our dear Gopi has continued to inspire these values in the herd and all our hearts.
It is a challenging time when a cow is passing but also a deeply moving and precious time. The universal reality that is so lively and tangible in cows comes more to the forefront as one is drawn into that unbounded wholeness of life, sharing that fullness of consciousness which we all are. Being around cows when they live without stress and fear is being in that wholeness. They have such a deep inward quality when they chew their cud eyes half closed or stand in such silence as their calves milk from them. One can understand why in many cultures they are thought of as mothers.
We are inspired by witnessing a beautiful growth and expansion of The Cows Foundation and are looking forward to increasing exponentially as humanity becomes aware of the great need to treat all Cows and all Beings with tenderness, kindness, compassion, and love, and see that all live with respect and dignity that every life form deserves.
With all Best Wishes,
Katherine
President, Trustee
The Cows Foundation
