🎃 The Kindness Beneath the Claws: A Halloween Reflection

Every October the sanctuary takes on a kind of quiet magic. The barn glows golden at dusk, the cats stretch across hay bales like living shadows, and the owls begin their nightly watch. Halloween is near — a season of mystery, superstition, and, if we’re honest, a bit of misunderstanding.

Throughout history, certain animals have been cast as villains in our stories. Black cats, for instance, were once seen as omens of bad luck or companions to witches. Crows and ravens were thought to carry dark magic. Even bats — gentle pollinators and mosquito-eaters — have been feared as creatures of the night.

But here at Pleasant Pasture, we’ve come to see these misunderstood beings for what they truly are: teachers in disguise.

Take Midnight our black barn cat. He’s all charm now — rolling in the sun and greeting visitors with a head bump — but when he first arrived, he was terrified of everyone. His wary eyes and defensive swats reminded us that fear often looks like aggression. With time and patience, he learned that human hands could bring love, not harm. Once labeled “unfriendly,” he’s now our ambassador of affection.

Or consider the crows that circle our pastures each morning. They once made us nervous — their sharp calls echoing like warnings. But as we watched them, we realized they were our partners, alerting us and the animals of potential danger. They weren’t messengers of doom; they were guardians in their own way.

And the bats — our tiny, winged night keepers — silently protect us every evening by feasting on the very mosquitoes that would otherwise torment our herd. They remind us that even those who thrive in darkness serve a beautiful purpose.

Perhaps that’s the heart of Halloween’s hidden wisdom: what we fear often just needs to be understood. Every creature, no matter how strange or shadowed, has a role in the web of life — and every person, too, carries both light and dark within them. When we choose curiosity over judgment, the “monsters” become miracles.

So this Halloween, as the moon rises over Pleasant Pasture, we’ll light a lantern not to ward off the darkness — but to welcome it. To honor all that we’ve learned from the wild, the wary, and the once-feared.

Because in the end, love isn’t about taming the darkness. It’s about seeing the beauty that’s always been there.

🎃 Give hope a home this season, help us care for the misunderstood, the healing, and the hopeful. Your support keeps every creature safe and loved under the same moonlight.👉 Sponsor a Friend Today