God Bless Our Southern States People and Pets

April 29, 2011

I sit here today making sure to remind myself that although life isn’t perfect I am alive. All those in which I love are safe within their homes. The tornados that ripped through our tiny towns in the South have not been this lucky. Today many are still searching for their missing family members and looking at shreds of what their lives used to be. To even begin to imagine the feeling of hopelessness that these families are feeling is beyond my measure.

I sat this morning looking through this house I love and the things I have collected and know in my heart it is simply nothing more than a gift in my life. There is no way to measure what one person’s home means to them. There is no way to measure the feeling if I were suddenly standing where my home used to be. How do we say we are sorry for those who have lost everything? The words “I am sorry” don’t even seem to measure up.

Today I am so grateful to be within the comforts of my home. My son safely at school, Sean working, my parents, siblings, and my friends are all moving through the day as normal. Although none of us are without issues and some forms of our own sadness we are here. We are breathing, living, and being given the gift of yet another day. How much more beautiful can that be? We have babies on their way and can look to our futures when so many through the South cannot right now. How lucky and blessed we are.

I watched a video earlier in which a woman dug through the rubble of what remained of her home digging her dogs out from under the debris. She cared not that she no longer had a piece of clothing, not even a piece of underwear, but she cared about the dogs in which were lost underneath. My heart breaks for these people. My love is out there for every one of them. To imagine having to flee for your human life and making the choice to leave your pets behind is one of such anguish. How do we ever live through making that choice? How could we ever say what we would or would not do when our very lives were on the line?

I can speak for myself on this matter as I sat in a walk in closet with my dogs during the storms for a while the other night. There were moments where things got rough and I was afraid. I flashed back to the memory of Hurricane Katrina where I watched a woman of color lift her small children into rescue baskets from a roof top sending them up to the helicopter. I remembered when she went to place her two dogs in the basket them saying to her she could not send the dogs up. This woman then refused to get into the basket herself saying she would wait until someone could rescue them all. She allowed her children to be taken to safety but stayed behind with her dogs. This woman had my heart from that moment on. I will never know her name but forever I am her fan.

Could I have let my human child go into that basket without me? No I could not have. It is in honest I tell you every day I say my animals are my children and I do love them as such. However my human child is and will always be my priority. Would I have killed myself getting back to my animals? You can bet your very life on it. Would it have ripped the very heart I carry out? All day long you can make bets that it would have. I would have gone back.

The thoughts of leaving my animals behind is one in which I can barely think of. It is something I say I would never do. And if all made possible I never would. My life revolves around the joy that my dogs bring me and I love them beyond measure. Losing them is heart and gut wrenching for me. All who know me will tell you when I lose a pet that is beloved it is much more than I can bear and the grief is so raw it hurts to feel it. This very day I am checking off my list in case of my untimely death who will take which animal. Who will care for it as I do? I have made arrangements for all of my pets in this event. It is something I have to think of.
Each dog I have is so special and so spoiled it is not comprehensible to most human beings. You have to be a dog person to understand the love another dog person has for them. I have Ginger my oldest who is 14, covered in tumors, and her vision is failing, but as sweet as the day is long and has been with me for years. Teddy my 9 yr old Pit/Chi mix is my watchdog, my ears, my eyes, and is such the character. My Ruthie 7 yrs….what a nasty Peke she is! However her antics and the sweet way she allows me to hold her despite her horrible history in life is what gives me hope. My sweet but stupid Girl Sophie, 21 months is as rotten and hyper as possible, but she is sweet willing to learn, and follows me wherever I go. Sophie gives me the bit of youth I am losing. And then there is my Jake. Jake is 3yrs old and the light of my heart in itself. As unfair as it seems he is the one…….and will forever be that most special one. Jake knows what it means when I give him a look. We communicate with one another without verbiage. He is compliant and good loving everything and everyone around him. And then Scooby….okay so maybe I am saying out loud he is my dog, maybe I am not. I am going to continue to call him foster for now despite the fact most already know better. The largest beast at 7 yrs of age I have ever laid eyes on. Scooby is nothing but pure and gentle love inside. Despite his failing limbs and back he does not hesitate to place that huge head on your shoulder and demand his love. So could I possibly leave them behind? It would be the hardest thing I would ever have to face even thinking of it. I just cannot say what I would or would not do if faced.

Our goals are great in life and we all have thoughts and opinions but until faced with the situation there is no way to know how we would react. I have emergency plans which include my pets and I encourage all others to do the same thing for their beloved pets. Our pets are with us because we wanted them and we must protect and cherish them. Pet ownership is a gift and should never be considered a right. It is our responsibility to care for what we brought in and there are no excuses for not giving them everything they deserve.

Please pray for the humans and the animals across the South right now. They have lost everything and those of you who are reading this are rich in wealth in many ways. Feel blessed and call those that you love and tell them so. Give your pets extra special treats and love today. To all of those who have lost I send my love my prayers and a piece of my heart for the pain they are feeling.