Old Words

I woke up to read old words.

In the quiet of the night, under a dark sky, and far from twinkling stars, I open up an old journal. In 2009, I published my first online blog post, titled Random's Sunday. What it meant, I don't know. The sun was bright on that day. I sat in my backyard with my three pups, Tibby, Lokie, and little Peanut while they laid sunning themselves alongside the pool. The citrus trees in full bloom of Orange and Lime filled the air of sour and sweet. Southern California is a magical place - even more so is the sun above Palm Springs. 

I don't remember why I chose the online forum over trusted private paper journals. I recall a sense of urgency that handwritten notes no longer satisfied. At the time, I struggled financially along with everyone one else feeling the adverse effects of the explosive burst of the housing bubble crisis. A year in I was filled with a quiet frenzy. A paralyzed state. All I could do to survive is move about mechanically. Wake. Work. Sleep. Wake. Work. Sleep. Wake. Work. Sleep. Etc.

"Peanut, Tibby, Lokie" circa '08-'09
Photo Credit: ©deyanira.

In between, I'd eat some days, feed my dogs the other days. Made sure to have enough gas in my Volkswagen to get me to work a week at a time. Them there were dark days under a bright sun. My mechanical approach to life soon rusted and cracked. Wake late. Work daze. Sleep not. Wake late. Work daze. Sleep not. Wake late. Work daze. Sleep not. Etc.

Ten years later, I still write while you sleep.

"The Hobbit Writing" GIF

R & R : A Quest for Life

🐾 | Rescue. | Rehabilitate. |  🐾

Get up and go. When it comes to saving lives, there is only one way to do it. Not sure how to begin to describe the events of today. A call came in. A call we’d been waiting weeks for. There was no time to prepare for the swell of scared little bodies we were about to encounter. In no time did the group rally to gather the necessary supplies. Trucks heading down the street in the direction of hope. 

Hope for the small lives that are about to change. Significantly. The group unloaded their gear and began to embrace those in need. One by one they were secured into their lifesaving vessels. Hot. Dehydrated. Matted. Hungry. In pain. Freighted. Each one of them experiencing their moment of rescue in their unique way. Some welcomed the new gentle touch. Others were not able to accept it yet. 

We see so many in need. We packed up the trucks and looked around. It seems the fight is to change a never-ending tidal wave of recklessness and despair. People are lonely. People are frightened. People lack a connection with each other. 

A gap exists where it shouldn’t, and we can only think of a handful of ways to fill it and make us feel whole again. Sometimes, the presence of another is just enough to tip the balance back to level. Sometimes, all we need is just one or two to keep us engaged. Sometimes, some of us can’t get enough and are unable to stop that we insist on filling the already filled gap with more and more.

Paw + Hand Cut Out www.mountainmetalarts.com

Twenty-one dogs were rescued today. Twenty-one dogs will eat a full meal, drink clean water, curl up on a soft blanket. Twenty-one dogs are in the care of a group of people dedicated to their wellbeing. Twenty-one dogs don’t know what tomorrow awaits them. What they will grow to learn, every minute that passes is to trust and experience a pain-free life.

It’s easy when you know what you are doing. It’s easy to interact with so many lives in a day and leave them in much better shape than when you met them. It’s also easy to mess up. To become inundated with the enormous responsibility of keeping and maintaining a healthy and fruitful life. 

We depend so much on each other. Dog. Human. Human. Dog. We’ve evolved to walk the same path, experience the same losses, and enjoy companionship. There is no denying it. Don’t even try it.

*~*

If you'd like to help, please visit Lewis & Clark Humane Society's donate page