Making Sense of Imbalance
Taz Watson
I am a deeply compassionate person. It is something that I credit my parents for. Both noteworthy animal lovers, they taught us from a very young age to respect, protect and care for animals. 
My 2 brothers and I grew up with several pets – mostly a hoard of bounding dogs, whom we just saw as happy, tail-wagging extensions of our family. We took pleasure in saving fallen chicks from trees and hand raising them under a light in our rooms. We rescued lady-birds, crickets and mice from the depths of our swimming pool and, no matter how big, hairy or terrifying they appeared, we bravely trapped spiders under glass jars and released them into the garden – somewhere, as kids, that we felt was suitably comfortable spider terrain. My parents taught us early on in life to live in harmony with all creatures of the natural world. Whether big or small, cute or scary, we all share this earth and we all have our purpose. That is what is so remarkable about the natural world. Everything fits together like a perfect little puzzle. Everything makes sense. Except for us.
Humans have a tendency to be destructive and greedy – creatures that treat the natural world as a way to enhance their status, financial standing, material possessions and ‘life quality’ – while actually not improving quality of life at all. Polluted waters, a damaged ozone, increased atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, smog, an unbalanced ecosystem and extinct animal populations are hardly improving our quality of life. What does it matter to the greedy, however, now that they can afford designer sunglasses, turbo-charged sports cars and a seaside mansion in which to display their newly acquired rhino-horn. For status, after all, these are the important things in life, aren’t they?
As I mentioned earlier, I was never raised in this way. I view the world differently, as do the many compassionate, selfless and proactive saviors of our natural world that continue to fight human greed and ignorance that is rapidly destroying the planet’s intricate natural balance. I’ve always wanted to be a piece of the puzzle that slots in as seamlessly as possible, but I now strive for more. I no longer what to be a sedentary compassionate who cries at the news of animal cruelty, but does nothing about it.
It was not until I saw the position advertised for this internship that I really questioned my role in all of this. I am a deeply compassionate person, I love animals, I despise anyone that hurts another living creature and I am young, healthy and able. Nothing was stopping me other than that I had chosen to bury my head in the sand like a dumb ostrich. I’ve always found it so hard to be exposed to the truth about animal cruelty and as a means of self-preservation I would remain intentionally oblivious to certain aspects of the truth. It was easier that way. This internship gave me the platform to finally get up, take my head out of the sand and make a contribution to wildlife conservation.
If we don’t start doing something for these important causes who will? There is nothing material to gain. There is no money earned, there are no luxuries involved. This is not a holiday, this is a war and we are now in the thick of it. I applied for the internship the day I became aware of it. And, here I am. Sitting at a small wooden desk in our humble tented camp in Entabeni, trying to make as much of a difference as is possible and hoping, desperately, that others will start helping too. Regardless of your location, your age, your sex, your race, this is all a battle that we face together if we want to prevent the extinction of our beautiful rhinos. Five years is not a long time. And that’s all the time we have left. Let’s not be the generation that sat by and watched our precious wildlife disappear. Let’s act.