Thursday, February 22, 2007

Memory

I've been surprised many times by the selectivity of memory. Recalls of same events, feelings, emotions are so different, at times conflicting or contradictory to one another by different people or at different time dependent upon one's state of mind at the moment. My memory of my younger past as a single father was filled with moments of tenderness, days of quiet contentment and happiness. There were moments of  frustration. But they were transitory leaving faintly vague traces.

Life lessons from a dog

I noticed that our little Pomeranian is getting a bit slower, less energetic as she approaches her 8th birthday, middle age in human term. She is still a very lovely dog with twinkling beady eyes and gentle joyful wagging tail. But a bit slower and not as fast sprinting upstairs to greet "Mommy" every morning. Her growing older is much more observable and obvious than that in humans. She has been teaching me about love, unconditional love, joy, loyalty, sadness, joy. It took me a couple of years to earn her love and trust but after that love is constant with unquestionable faithfulness. Her slower walks, less energy, a bit darker demeanor, gently remind me that all things shall pass and life will end someday. Isn't it a bit ironic that when we love for someone we also are reminded that love will eventually end.