Words can do our bidding but sometimes nothing else will.Especially a cat.
It seems I've always had a dog. But there have been a few cats in my live. During college I somehow ended up with a cat, a stray, a very solumn, regal cat who I swear had a purr with a British accent. I really got fond of that four legged ball of fur, whom I named Sir Edmund Hillary Cat.
He had a wild love affair with some common tabby and took off, never to be seen again, likely breaking her heart in the process.
Dogs, however, dogs wait, they long for your return and greet your with an unbridled joy that knows no bounds. I could come home naked with a $500 bill taped to my forehead and I wouldn't get the kind of welcome my dog gives me. (What? You too??)
Just once, before I die, I want someone with two feet to miss me like that. Maybe they do, and I just don't see, not everyone wears their heart on the outside of their fur.
But I also admire how when I'm gone, Barkley gets alone just fine, loving those he's with, bonding with the rest of his pack, some related by blood, most of them not. Unlike most cats who just have staff, dogs have their pack and Barkley's includes so many, including Aunt Tam, Goddess of the pig's ears.
You can own a dog, but he's with you because he wants to be. Short of tying him up, if Barkley was truly unhappy here he'd just jump the fence and be gone in a heartbeat, off to the land of unlimited biscuits and Mom's who don't live out of a suitcase part of the year.
But he doesn't. Each day, be it rain, shine, or snow, is his gift to me, one I accept gladly. For all of you, (and you know who you are), who understand the travel, my need to be alone a lot of the time, that just accept me as I am, without expectation or obligation, thank you, for you are MY pack.
19 comments:
"Just once, before I die, I want someone with two feet to miss me like that."
People can't because we don't have tails to wag and it's kinda gross jumping up on another and licking their face. At least that's what my wife told me :)
"I could come home naked with a $500 bill taped to my forehead and I wouldn't get the kind of welcome my dog gives me."
I, er, um, yeah. Just not exactly sure how to respond to that bit ;)
I think it was Mark Twain that wrote, "I aspire to be the man my dog thinks I am". (Not sure on that).
Brigid,
I do, sometimes, think people can learn something from dogs.
And if you came through S. Texas, yup, it's damn hot! Even DFW is humid. But at least Dallas kind of has winters. I miss fall weather, we don't really have it here.
Someone once said, "Dogs are the only friends we have that when we leave they think we will never return, but when we return they think we will never leave them again."
Our Lab and I used to drive for 4 nights and 5 days up to the Pacific Northwest. My wife would fly in and our Lab would greet her just as if she had only gone to the grocery store.
Love has a name ... its name is dog!
Hah, great post Brigid! I feel exactly the same way about my pup Sage. She is going on 11 years now and she is just as enthusiastic, loving and wonderful as she was as a newly-found pup.
Dogs seem to have an unconditional love and loyalty above and beyond what most people show. A dog thinks nothing of putting itself between those it cares about and danger.
It wasn't hot! AUGUST is hot! Ha ha! September is about the same...
I know what you mean about dogs. My blue heeler mix mutt Gizmo is always the first one to greet me when I come home. If she's sprawled out in her favorite spot by the sliding patio door and I walk through the living room, she will make eye contact and wag her tail, every time, while the kids don't even look away from the boob toob or their nintendo games. I wave back to her.
I love it when I'm sitting at the computer and she will come sit with me, sometimes putting a paw on my leg saying "pet me Daddy!" And I love the look of pride she has when I do. I don't like to think of the fact that she's 14 years old now...
Barkley's the best and I hope I'll be included in his pack someday.
We just left our two fur-covered family members at my parents for three days while we took a short trip. I've often wondered what they think when they have no long-term concept of time... we leave in the morning and get home in the evening and they understand, but you leave and evening comes and you don't return... what stress that must be to them.
Yet, they are always glad to see us whether we've been apart for an hour or a week... it's like we've been gone for an eternity with the greeting they give.
Dann in Ohio
'I could come home naked with a $500 bill taped to my forehead and I wouldn't get the kind of welcome my dog gives me.'
Wanna bet? Try it, and we'll see if we can't make Midwest Chick jealous!
You are always welcome here, and we will be glad to see you, $500 or not.....Nakedness optional (what will the neighbors think???
Soon....
Glad you're back and I know that Barkley was SOOO glad to see you! Your northern pack members are also looking forward to seeing you but know you'd like some home/cave time first.
Not sure we'll lick your face, with or without the $500 taped to it, but we'll serve you beer and really old cheddar cheese. Barkley is welcome also, always and we have a guest room--I'll even put a mint on the pillow (or a chocolate cookie).
I promise that I miss you when you're absent from the blogosphere for >24 hours.
And I'm only me.
You would not need the $500 bill, I wouldn't turn down the naked, though I remember you told the doc that was your Birth Control Method.....
Great post Brigid, as usual... I think you've about worn out the hammer hitting so many nails on the head. :-)
The difference between a wife and a dog is if you lock either one in the trunk of a car , The dog is still happy to see you when you open the lid : ) smibsid . I know , I know , I'll go stand in the corner now !
When Joyce and I got home from Indy, our two cats were waiting at the door. The next morning, Amber was perched on Joyce's chest and Snowflake had snuggled up along my back. These two have been as attentive as dogs.
We have had some cats that were a bit stand-offish, but they also had a history of abuse.
Cats also are low-maintenance. We left them with plenty of food and a water-fountain. Our daughter came by once to check, but all-in-all they behaved themselves while we were gone and only complained a "little" about being left behind. Well, Amber's still sulking a bit, but she's a cat. They do that.
Crucis, umm, the cats are probably sulking because you came back...unless either the litter box needed changing or the food dish was empty.
Brigid, I wouldn't stoop to the level of some here to comment on what kind of a welcome you'd get... but your money's no good here... ;)
'Mr. B - you're neighbors are going to see a redheaded amazon show up in a ultra large black truck with tinted glass and a wheel gun on her hip. They're probably not going to bat an eye at anything else. "
Like my neighbors haven't already been desensitized? They have, after all, got me as a neighbor......Likely, you COULD show up naked (with or without the wheelgun).....and they likely wouldn't even blink...They are used to unusual things.
I could come home naked with a $500 bill taped to my forehead and I wouldn't get the kind of welcome my dog gives me.
Make it $1000 and include a plate of bacon and I bet you would. :)
i am good at holding the tears--
except when it comes to dogs. thanks a lot, brig!
(snuffle, blow, sigh)
*Barkley pat*
Post a Comment