William Shakespeare was an astounding playwright with the incredible ability to infuse ambiguity into every piece he wrote. In one of his best-known plays, “Romeo and Juliet,” he coined the term “sweet sorrow,” perfectly summing up the lead characters’ mutual desire. First with the sweet mourning following the parting of a loved one, and second, by the joy promised upon reuniting.
A similar “sweet sorrow” is often experienced in animal welfare auditing. At first, there may be sorrow because of a deficiency in an area of care or a reluctance to audit at a specific site, but just as Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers discover, there is always hope for identification of a better system to suit changing audit needs.