Page 12 - Autumn 13

The Hamster Wheel
Jane Keogh, BAHVS Junior Vice President
By the time you read this, the Autumn Equinox and Samhain will have come and gone, and the Winter Solstice will be upon us. The bounty of an incredibly fruitful Autumn will be past – did I make apple wine this year? Or let the opportunity pass again? The days will be short and we will have moved from action and outgoing energy into the quiet contemplation and going within that this time of year brings.
The year is an endless cycle that we trust will continue to repeat itself for a long time to come. Yet sometimes our lives seem stuck in a cycle that appears to repeat endlessly – more like a hamster wheel than a natural rhythm of ebb and flow. The same can often seem true of the wider community, especially when we consider our homeopathic journey: the sceptics’ letters, the defensive or positive response, an attack in parliament, a committee formed to question our legitimacy, the rallying of our colleagues, veteri- nary or otherwise. Hamster wheel? Circles? Sometimes it is hard to see the forward progress.
Yet in this time of quiet reflection I would offer the possibility of a shift. Earlier this year a vet- erinary survey was conducted online (www.vet- surgeon.org), the results of which were loudly proclaimed to damn the practice of veterinary homeopathy, and shout that a vast majority of vets wanted homeopathy in veterinary practice banned.
Looking at the figures, 450 vets answered this survey and that after considerable coercion and repeated reminders to do so. This figure repre- sents less than 3% of the veterinary profession – so far, so hamster wheel. We’ve heard it all before, including the emergency Skype meet- ings of your committee as to how to respond. What is interesting (and led to the emergency meetings) was that the results of this survey were sent to all the major news publications (small and broadsheet) and many poplar animal
publications, such as Dog’s Monthly, along with a vitriolic commentary damning homeopathy in the veterinary profession. In the end the com- mittee decision was to write a reply for the vet- erinary press and BAHVS website, and as for the rest, to Wait and Watch with Wisdom – a good homeopathic approach.
And what happened? Nothing. Absolutely noth- ing. Well, not quite. Not a single paper pub- lished the story, despite its arrival at the height of summer when “news” is often scarce. Dog’s Monthly decided that it was too complex an issue to run. And the BAHVS website received more hits in the space of a few weeks than at any other time.
Result: considerable egg on the faces of those, who put so much energy into the survey, and quiet vindication for our community. Somewhere, it seems, a shift is happening. If we can hold to our truth and stand firm in the face of adversity, then clearly we can stop the hamster wheel. And this without resorting to the same level of negative action employed by those who fear what we do.
So, at this time of introspection and contempla- tion, as the cycle of the seasons turns and we celebrate the return of light and the sun at the Solstice and Christmas, let us plant the seeds of intention for the year to come. Now is the time to let go of the past year, without judgement, and to take some quiet space to consider, what we have learnt in the past twelve months. To think about, what we want to take and plant as seeds of inspiration for the New Year to come, and what we want to release as valuable les- sons now past.
As the New Year approaches and the dark days of Winter imperceptibly start to shrink, it is time to consider plans for the months to come. It is time to plant those seeds of hope and inspira- tion that will enable us to choose to walk away
from the repetitive negative cycle. Both on a personal level and within our homeopathic community, it is time to reflect how we will speak our truth and turn away from the repeat- ing game that our detractors would have us play.
There is always a choice – to engage or not. The pantomime can become the inspirational story. The choices we make as individuals affect our worlds on every level. The quiet still- ness of Solstice energy is the perfect time to start making choices for ourselves that will unite us as a community. We are already prov- ing that as a community we can withstand whatever is thrown at us.
So make the intention to connect in the coming year, both with your inner truth and with those of like mind. Come to the Spring Meeting of BAHVS in London, especially if you have lost contact with colleagues, and rediscover our community and strength. Spend a day remembering the power of positive support and the welcome of all on the same path. Make a commitment in these dark days to step into the light of our homeopathic fellowship in the year to come.
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