PARALLEL LIVES

Most of you will probably think I'm ready for the little men in the white coats once you've read this blog. No matter. I find a commonality and for some unexplainable reason I decided to share. Please do not judge me. Just pass it off as holiday stress and advancing age.

One day I was sitting at my desk when these thoughts suddenly found their way to my brain. There is a validity to them even though I suppose I'm comparing apples to oranges.

Dakota and I are both rescue entities - one from the animal world and one from the human world. My mother didn't want me when I was born and offered me to hospital personnel. She finally left me there. The State required my siblings to pick me up and care for me for a certain amount of time and then I was turned over to the State. They placed me in a foster home. Eventually I was moved to an adoption agency where I was finally adopted.

Dakota was displaced because his owner could no longer take care of him and he was taken to a pet store and boarded until he was retrieved by a foster person in Iowa and eventually adopted by me.

Dakota is old. I am old. I need him. He needs me. We have similar needs, likes, and dislikes. We understand one another. We feed off of each other, support each other, and share our lives.

It's a perfect solution for us. Our days are filled with things we both love to do. I talk, he understands. I give, he returns 100 fold. I thank him with a hug, he thanks me with a smile, wet face lick, and asks for more. Our "love-in" continues 24/7. We know when each is "down." We both do our best to "make it better." When we are happy, we are very, very happy. When we are sad, we try to hide it. We accept each others weaknesses and we take delight in the strengths.

But most of all we TRUST one another. You cannot always say that when you are talking dog to dog or human to human.

We wish you a very happy holiday season and may your new year bring you good fortune and dreams come true.

FROM THORNS COME ROSES

This has become a difficult holiday season like none other I've experienced. The bottom line is probably because of my age, life is handing me thorns and roses. Let me explain.

I have encountered a number of obituaries in our local paper of friends, classmates, and business associates. Of course it is always sad but when they appear at holiday time it seems much harder to deal with. And at my age it makes one face reality head on. It is difficult for me to get to funerals so I welcome and embrace our paper's Legacy program. I appreciate the Guest Books. I can enter my thoughts and sympathy to the family and not feel so guilty about not attending the funeral. Many times older folks just put in a notice, have no funeral, but plan on a memorial service at a later date.

From these "thorns" come roses. I appreciate reading all of the entries. Most, I do not know, but they provide further in site to the person I've known. So often I have lost track with a friend and I am able to learn so much more about his or her life since we lost contact. I would not learn all of this otherwise. My heart is warmed by how much my friend accomplished in a lifetime or how many lives he or she touched and in what way. It makes me feel closer and completes the circle of that friendship. It underlines my thoughts and memories. I am able to have a much broader picture of my friend.

More roses come from messages from the family or spouse thanking me for signing the Guest Book and adding my own personal thoughts. It makes them happy to learn things they might not have known. It provides support in their saddest hours and as the days and weeks go on, they are able to look back at a life they were part of and find peace in words of comfort from those that have written.

Other wonderful things come from these entries too. I have received requests for more information to share with children so they can carry on the family memories and ensure their children will have a picture of a grandparent, aunt, or uncle. I am so happy to share my memories of the friend or classmate that other family members may not know. It's a different kind of family tree and one I'm always glad to contribute to.

Lastly, there are messages from others that read your entry, not related to the family, but knew you years ago. I have been so pleasantly surprised to hear from individuals that I knew years ago. Sometimes they share their web sites. Sometimes they want to know what I've been doing with my life. They were not necessarily close friends. But it doesn't matter because these folks help complete your life.

It also makes me so sad that I have friends that refuse to use a computer. Yes, they can complicate your life if you let them. But they can also turn thorns into roses and enrich your life in so many ways as well as bringing you full circle. So, this holiday season has brought much sadness to my life, but it has brought me a huge bouquet of roses to enjoy and cherish and make this Christmas a very special time of my life.

ANOTHER DAKOTA TEST

I introduced Dakota to a new part of my life. I felt he was ready to venture into uncharted waters. I have a theatre organ. Through the years none of my dogs have very much cared for this contraption. I'm sure it's an assault on their ears. I have not played it since Dakota arrived, but I just had to get back to it because of the holiday season. My life revolves around music. Music and dogs have kept me going all of these years. I am happiest when I can be involved in either. It's best when both are active in my life.

Dakota - The Saint followed me to the monster. He patiently stood by while I got my music and slid onto the bench. I made the mistake of turning on the organ before I turned on the light and the crack of noise even threw me into a spin. But the two of us recovered.

This is an old organ that I purchased in the mid 60s. Do I dare say it has "tubes?" I can hear the snickers and laughter. None-the-less, it provides me with great entertainment and relaxation. It needs coaxing now and then, but I work around it and enjoy myself, not caring what anyone else thinks.

I set it up for a very quiet presentation. I wanted to start out in a big way, but I knew that Dakota would run for cover and never trust me again. So I was quite conservative. Bless his heart, he sat next to the bench and endured my endless mistakes and flubes. He seemed quite interested in the foot pedels. I stopped playing and just played the foot pedles and he tilted his head with each different note. I kept the session short and he seemed to appreciate that.

The next day I ventured back to the organ. I turned to find Dakota looking at me as if to say, "Gee, I thought this was a one-time thing." He didn't seem quite as anxious to sit by my side and listen, but he's a pretty brave guy and stayed for a while. He didn't move very far away but he did pace a bit. This is going to take time. But I trust that he will eventually accept it or find a place to hang out far enough away to not endure the assault on his ears and still be near enough to be sure he knows when I will finish and go back to the quiet life he thought he'd found when he arrived here with his Forever Family.

I will not be able to play with the gusto I'm used to, but that's OK. It's wonderful to be back on the bench and flexing my fingers over the keyboards. I do have eye problems now that weren't there before and will have to be addressed when my eye appointment arrives, but that's a small part of the whole package. Dakota doesn't know how lucky he is that I didn't start singing along with the playing!!! I have some pride left.