I apologize. This is the longest I've gone without updating, but so much has happened, both good and bad. I wont touch on the bad, as while it affects me personally it is not relevant to the purpose of this blog. Therefore I may as well start off with the good.
I got the internship! Not only did I get it, but I've been at it for about two weeks now. I've been exhausted by the time I get home, and haven't much had the energy to write. This will probably persist as baby season wears on, but I'll attempt to update things as much as possible.
So far the internship has been about what I expected, plus a little extra. What I expected was a lot of work, a lot of screeching babies (though I could not have predicted the ear-splitting volume), and possibly even some enjoyment. The work is demanding, but I really do still enjoy it. I love birds, as if that weren't obvious enough, and working with them has been an amazing experience so far. I'm finally expanding my knowledge beyond, well, owls. A month ago I knew a whole lot about owls, and not so much about other types of birds. Now I'm tasking myself with learning about other avians.
One thing I can say to those of you that might have an interest in interning is this. Volunteering is a great experience. You get to learn about tons of wildlife, and interact with them in a limited capacity. You get to help care for them, and at the end of the day you leave feel pretty good about what you've done. It's an overall positive experience.
With an internship, you become more acquainted with the parts of wildlife rehabilitation that aren't as enjoyable. Since I've started my internship I've been injured a few times, made many mistakes, and have had several birds die during my shift. I come home at the end of the night covered in excrement, and dirt, and old food; sometimes even blood. I've had to practically dissect a ton of dead animals in order to feed some of our meat eaters, and there is paperwork every time a new animal shows up. The work can be physically and emotionally exhausting at times, and while I would recommend volunteering to most people, I would not recommend an internship to anyone who I didn't feel was truly passionate about this type of work. You need to have a strong constitution, and be able to handle a job that is very demanding, and can thoroughly drain you at times.
To me, it's worth all of the parts that make it difficult, because I love what I'm doing, and I feel fulfilled doing it. It's a challenge, something I haven't had in a long time, and another step in the process of getting to where I'd ultimately like to be. So far so good.
