When I think of an ark the first thing that comes to my mind is one of my favorite Bible stories about Noah's ark. God shows us in this story, that we can trust Him with everything that God calls us to do. Even if its crazy, like in Noah's case, God called him to build an ark. He had to gather his family and one female and one male of each animal species. He put them on an ark because God had a plan to flood the earth. Even though it sounded crazy, Noah followed God's lead and when it was the end there was a big rainbow. The sign that God promises to never flood the earth again.
So here is this place called, Animal Ark. Its located in hills of Reno Nevada. Animal Ark is a wildlife sanctuary for animals who have been abandoned, hurt, or sick. Some of the animals brought in are attempted to put back in the wild while others who stay there for the rest of their lives.
My family and I have been members at Animal Ark since 2012. We have seen a lot of animals come and go. It can be hard seeing the animals that I have grown to love so deeply pass away but then I remember that they got a second chance at life. It brings me joy knowing that things could have been a lot worse for them.
There was this one animal that really inspired me to write this article. His name was Zachariah and he was a red tail hawk. Some of you who know me will know that I love all kinds of birds as I even have two of my own. But what made Zachariah so special was how he overcome a bad injury and how the people at Animal ark would able to help him even though it seemed hopeless.
Zachariah was found on the side of the road, badly injured, and with a broken wing. A good Samaritan picked him up and took him to an animal hospital. From there, he went to Animal Ark. When he first came to animal ark he was scared and he didn't like when people get close to his habitat. They had to block him off so no one could come near. I remember seeing him and I felt bad for him because of his condition but I knew he was at a good place.
It took a couple months to go from a bird who has terrified of people, to a bird who loved people! When visitors came up to him, he would swing on his porch and whistle. Once a day his trainer would put Zachariah on a leash, take him out of the cage, and show him off to all the visitors. The visitors would even watch while he eats. It was always my favorite part of visiting Animal Ark - seeing Zachariah. They would even take Zachariah to different elementary schools for kids to learn more about Animal Ark. I have a magnet and a drink saucer with him on it from their gift shop.
Sadly, Zachariah passed away last year. It was hard for me to go Animal ark and not see him there, but I know he's happy and in a better place. Ever since then, every time I see a redtail hawk, I think of Zachariah.
Something that we can take out of Animal Ark and the story of Noah is that no matter how crazy life may be, there is no such thing as impossible.
