I’ve always known that life isn’t fair. I could give hundreds of examples, but I’ll stick to the one that bothers me the most: the rules for using household furniture. Just because I’m a dog, I’m not allowed to use any of it. I’m supposed to stay on the floor at all times, and if I want to take a nap, I have to choose between my dog bed and my dog crate. Both are quite comfortable, but the point is that our house is loaded with comfortable furniture and I’m forbidden to use any of it.
Yet the human members of my family can use whatever they want. Mom loves to read in her favorite chair, and she sleeps in a bed upstairs that has plenty of room for me to join her and Dad if they’d let me. (Which they do not.) Dad falls asleep on the family room couch all the time, especially when he’s watching TV at night. And both of them sit down to eat at a table, yet I have to stand in the kitchen, eating out of my supper dish on the floor. There’s nothing fair about this at all!
Luckily, I’m a smart dog, and I know I actually can get up on the furniture as long as I only do it when my parents aren’t home. I also know I’ve got it pretty good, despite the disparity in household privileges. I have a home, after all, with parents and extended family who love me, a house, a yard, steady meals and regular walks. And what’s most unfair of all is that so many animals don’t have what I do.
But before I was adopted, I lived in two different animal shelters, and that wasn’t an easy time. It was better than being a stray or living with people who neglected or abused me, but it still wasn’t easy. Dogs who live in shelters spend most of their time alone in a cage, with little human interaction. It’s very stressful, because it’s noisy during the day (stressed dogs tend to bark a lot) and we can also sense the fear of the dogs who have just arrived and aren’t yet sure they’re in a safe place. Often people walk by our cages without even looking at us, no matter how much we try to get their attention. Or they look at us and then simply move on, which is sort of soul-crushing.
To make matters worse, all across the country, animal shelters are both full of animals and short on the staff and volunteers needed to take care of them. And that’s really sad, because trust me, those are the people who make living at a shelter bearable. The staff who feed us, clean our cages and give us medical care; the volunteers who give us attention and walks, and the people who donate toys for us to play with are so important to the well being of shelter animals. Of course, the most important people are the ones who actually adopt us.
So I’m making a simple plea for help for all the animals still living in a shelter. If everyone just did something, whether adopting a homeless animal, volunteering at a shelter, donating money, or simply dropping off their old linens and newspapers, it would make a HUGE difference! Life may not be fair, but by working together, we can make it better….
Love, Finn
When I was younger, I never thought I’d be happy spending a Friday night rocking a baby to sleep or bathing a toddler, but the truth is, I am. Sometimes I still feel a bit surprised by the fact that I have three grandchildren now, but trust me, it’s a happy surprise. I’m no longer young, and that’s a fact. But luckily, I’ve got three precious reasons to be grateful for this new stage of my life, and when all is said and done, all I really feel is blessed……
We actually had a rather nice Thanksgiving this year. The vaccines allowed us to gather as an extended family, and for that I was thankful. I was even more thankful that my husband’s long battle with cancer finally seems to be over, and that we will soon be welcoming another grandchild into our family. Also, I managed to cook the turkey without setting off the smoke alarm, which doesn’t always happen. All of which is to say that, even in these troubled times, there is still a whole lot of good going on. We just have to be willing to see it….
When Mom and Dad first brought me home from the animal shelter, I was still young and very naive. I didn’t realize that people have tons of rules, and that I was expected to memorize and obey all those rules if I wanted to live in peace with my human family. I had to learn where I was allowed to sleep (my dog bed, my crate, or the floor) and where I wasn’t allowed to sleep (everywhere else, apparently). I had to distinguish between the dog toys that I was encouraged to play with and the children’s toys that I was forbidden to chew on. Most importantly, I discovered that while it’s perfectly acceptable for humans to “potty” inside the house and that they even have designated rooms for it, I am expected to go outside every single time I have to relieve myself. (And if you think squatting in the yard first thing in the morning when it’s ten degrees outside is easy, you’ve obviously never had to do it.)
I’m actually pretty proud of myself for how well I’ve adapted and I know that I’m lucky to have found a loving family. Because there are lots of dogs still living in shelters who would give their right paw for a chance to finally have a real home. Just something to think about, for those of you who might have room in your hearts and home for one more…….
And the fact that life can be unexpectedly hard isn’t the only thing I accept. I also accept, and even plan on, the fact that life can also be quite good. Which is why I have every intention of making a dinner reservation at a very nice restaurant when next year’s anniversary rolls around, and I might even look into booking a weekend getaway as well. That celebration may not actually happen, but I’m hoping it will, and that hope is enough for me.
As much as I hate all the devastation that this pandemic has wrought, I have to admit that it has taught me some valuable lessons. There was a time when I seriously believed I was too old to take care of a young child anymore, and even struggled with understanding my role as a grandparent. But then my grandson’s daycare closed for eleven weeks and I nervously stepped to the plate to offer my services as primary care-giver. And it was wonderful! I was more tired than I had been in years, but I also became much closer to my grandson than I ever would have been under normal circumstances.
While I would have preferred that 2020 had gone differently, for me and for everyone else in the world, it wasn’t entirely a wash-out of a year, and not just because this was the year I gained a precious granddaughter. I learned a lot in the past twelve months, and I truly believe that some of those lessons will help me be a better person in the years to come. I’ve learned to have more faith in myself and in the people around me, to remember that the best way to deal with adversity is with compassion and patience, and most of all, to never lose hope for a better future. Happy New Year, everyone!
But 2017 also had it’s good points. I enjoyed a fun beach vacation with my family, reconnected with some old friends I hadn’t seen in far too long, and got to experience an (almost) total solar eclipse. My blog was featured on WordPress “Discover” which put me in touch with interesting and talented writers from all over the world. But best of all, I got the wonderful news that a grandson is on his way and, if all goes well, he should be arriving soon.
The plant not only lived, it thrived. And the last time I was at a garden center, I saw one that looked just like it and eagerly read the label. Turns out, that scraggly bush wasn’t a weed at all…it’s actually a butterfly bush (which I still don’t remember buying). And this whole past week it’s been busy attracting monarch butterflies.
Muddling Through My Middle Age 