Day 871

Ranger and I were walking the other day and suddenly he had that guilty look on his face. Notorious for stashing a piece of paper or tissue in his cheek, I told him to “drop it!”… and reluctantly, he did. When I straightened it out, the message on his “stolen treasure” hit home.

“Be for others what you needed when you had no one.”

I carried that message around for a day or so until I had a moment to reflect on its power.

Being one of the fortunate ones, who has loved ones close at hand, I had to dig deep to capture that feeling and build empathy. Sitting on the front porch with my Goldens, I had that moment.

Surprisingly, I dredged up a couple of times when I felt alone and isolated. Going through these memories was unpleasant and I realized that they had been buried and smoldering for years.

The most poignant memory was years ago, when I was a single parent and trying to make sense out of just about everything. My sweet folks kept an eye on my children while I went up to the cabin with the pups. After much quiet soul-searching, I discovered an inner-strength that helped me move forward. However, before that little voice reminded me of my strength and fortitude, things looked a bit bleak.

I encapsulated those “lost feelings” in my heart to bring out whenever someone needs a friend to help them out of their loneliness. Perhaps, we go through the rough parts of our journeys so that we may help others in need.

That is one of the reasons I am driven to do my Therapy Dog work. Although I am not able to empathize with every heartache, where I fail, the Goldens step right in with their light and love. They always make everything a little better.