Do What You Love

Ever since my layoff in May of 2009, I have heard the resounding mantra—Do What You Love...and you will be successful. I understand the concept but it is a huge leap of faith into the unknown, and I am apprehensive. Without a doubt my passion is parrots—and macaws in particular, I understand them, I relate to them, and most of all, I really love being around them—Macaws are guys birds, they're obnoxious, loud, overbearing, and yet deep inside there is still a child that wants and needs to be loved and views things so differently than us. Someone along my journey made a comment "macaws will steal everything on your plate, but most of all—they'll steal your heart" and it is very true.

If I had the opportunity to do my life over, I think I would have gone into veterinary medicine or psittacine research and do graphic design on the side or perhaps pursue my fine art background as a hobby. Life gives no guarantees but the some of us played by the rules and we got blind-sided, jaded, or fucked without getting kissed. Am I bitter? Oh hell yes! But, I realize there are other opportunities in life and sometimes we need to create our own path in life.

I have met so many wonderful people in the avicultural community, brilliant passionate people that are amazing and I am so lucky to have many as friends and associates. As small of a community as we are, we have a vast network and we're all linked somewhere along the way and we all share the common thread—our love of birds, a thread that makes us a family.

I am at a point in my life where I am old enough to make wise decisions—at times and realize where I have made some of my mistakes. When you're in college, all you want is to get a degree and make money—you haven't developed your passion or felt it—now, I know my passion and I need to develop a way of making a living with it, I need to bring all the aspects of my life together and use it to make a living...Stay tuned!