What is LOVE?

I really do believe the word love has been hijacked. Love means so much more to me than how our culture uses the word. Like the 5 love……

Failure is not Fatal

I really wrote a book  about my dog. Like most books, I am writing it over, and have been inspired to write it in her voice, not mine. I am amazed

Heaven

On the second day I had Lucy I took this picture. She was studying my every move. Analyzing me like Jack Russells do. Their mind works continuously. They have to be on task. Everyone has an idea of what heaven is like……..

Freedom is Worth It

I came home to find Lucy had destroyed the pen….

My favorite excerpt from the book

“Meanwhile, I was still leaving her in the cage every day. Every dog owner/expert said they get used to it.  I had to keep anything I valued out of her reach from the cage. Then I had to secure the cage to keep her from sliding it to something she could grab and destroy. She got to the corner of my glorious chaise lounge and tore it. All the while she continued her determined efforts to make a break in the cage that would allow her to escape.

Finally, I came home one day to find the cage literally destroyed. Two weeks was all it took for her to destroy it. It was a pile of metal, stacked in the middle of the trailer. On top of that, once again, she seemed to be quite proud of herself. She was bouncing around with a look that said, “aren’t you proud of me”, “look at me, I got out!”. It was impossible for me to be mad at her, and I was not sure it would work if I did get mad.

I could not help but be proud of her that she had broken through. She was not here to be pinned up. Locked away from bringing joy to others was not her calling.”

Courage

At times when I see fear, I think of Lucy.  Lucy was fading in her last few months, and she had so much courage. Here is her effort to jump just like she had done months earlier. Toward the end, she knew her time was short, and she cared more about how I was going to be without her. She was ready to go to that next plane of existence. She knew how much I loved her. Her look of love at me at the end will be etched in my mind, but she also knew it was her time. That is why I looked her in the eye and promised to tell anyone who would listen what a wonderful dog she was, and how much she will always mean to me. And I will be okay.

Hope is Always Available

The first day I saw Lucy, she exuded hope, even though she was in a cage. Whenever we went on trips, she looked for what might be next exciting stop. When the police pulled me over for speeding, Lucy bounced up to say hello, hoping for a new friend. And she won them over. Lucy reminds me that no matter what happens, don’t let the negativity get you down. No matter what we hear, never lose hope. Even at the end of her life, I know she had hope for me and my future. You see, before Lucy, deep down, I had lost hope in a lot of areas. No matter what I hear, I won’t lose hope for my future, thanks to having Lucy. Having her in my life gives me hope.

Virtues

Upon publishing the book, and looking back on it I missed emphasizing some of Lucy’s virtues that I did not fully embrace. If you read the book and skimmed over the chapter on “Lucy’s Run” it might have passed the reader as well. Lucy showed courage, hope, belief in herself, and intolerance for negativity. I will always want to model that behavior in me as well.

Determination Was Why I Love Lucy

Too many times in life we see our limitations and give up on what we really want and need. It takes courage and determination to break out of the figurative cages we put ourselves into. Lucy ended up totally destroying this cage and escaping, and she was quite proud of herself. She won me over in the process.

Lucy Deserved the Best

When I brought Lucy home for the first time, I brought all of my knowledge into my experience with Lucy. Yesterday, I found out one of my football coaching heroes was going into the Hall of Fame. Jimmy Johnson mentioned a book that I immediately went out and purchased. I quoted the author in my book about Lucy. The book had a significant influence on how I wanted to deal with my dog. You can get it here.