Living in the Present

As I was scooping dog droppings from my yard today I was thinking of how

my mother would say matter-of-factly, “if I had to do that I wouldn’t have a dog.”. Of course, my parents do not have pets. She is missing out on the vast amount of joy my pets bring to our lives (my husband’s and mine). The unconditional love that they give us and the reminders to enjoy life is reason enough to have them.

Just like each person is a unique individual, influenced by their life experiences, so no two are identical – each pet - dog cat etc. is also equally unique.

Our newest family member is Angel. She wakes every morning so happy and excited to see us! I can only imagine that she wakes up and thinks, “Yes! I’m still here! This is my Heaven! Where I get the best food and belly rubs!

Angel came to us from a puppy mill. She was a dog used to breed puppies lived in a cage her whole life (over 4 years) until the puppy mill was shut down by law enforcement and a rescue group took Angel in and found a foster family to care for her. Her foster family worked with her to help her adjust to life in a home, not in a cage. They taught her how to accept human touch that wasn’t unkind (as she still shows signs of having been abused which is noticeable if you watch her body language). They tried to teach her how to live with another dog and so much more.

She is so sweet, smart and adorable. When our paths crossed with Angel we weren’t actively looking for a dog but the universe sent us signs and we were presented with the opportunity to adopt her. Now, I cannot imagine life without her. We really were hoping for a friend for our other dog, Buddy, who recently lost his life friend, Gigi who crossed the Rainbow Bridge not long before Angel came into our lives.

She has become the best of friends with Buddy. She loves to sleep next to him and sometimes on him! She looks to him whenever she is unsure of things - to see what he thinks and what they should do.

She loves to go for walks in the woods and is quite brave in my opinion. She walked confidently the very first time I took her and Buddy for a walk in the forest.

She reminds me that even though she has had a ”bad” past, that we are not our past. Our past does not equal our future. She shows me every day how she loves life. She brightens all of our lives. She reminds me to live in the present and not in the past.