22 Comments

That’s so beautiful. I’m so glad you responded so generously and so did Rex. And now that dog has a much happier life.

There’s a little cartoon of a mother dog and her little just born puppies all happy, then they give a puppy to a man. He takes it home and it won’t stop crying. He finally goes back to the place and reunites it with his family and takes them all home together. I guess we are so ignorant of the psychology of animal pets, not aware we put them in suffering. I’m often concerned of fairly big dogs in small city apartments, it doesn’t seem right.

Expand full comment
author

I sometimes find myself having to explain to my young child that our dog has (or had) a dog mother and that he got taken away... and suddenly I feel really weird about the whole system. And I know what you mean about big dogs in small apartments, although I've had my own big dogs-- both in apartments and in houses with yards and they seemed equally happy in both, mostly just want to be near me, whether, indoors or out. They don't want to be alone.

Expand full comment
Jun 29Liked by Anna Schott

Kindness.

Expand full comment

Such a great one. So glad it worked out for Ralph, and you. I love the beginning section, too. Perfectly captures that California summer feel.

Expand full comment
author

Thank you, Rob!

Expand full comment

I have a recurring dream of living in the middle of a forest. C is coming to terms with the fact that now this dream needs to be some kind of reality. I am reading some on rewilding and scouting for houses that are in the fringe of civilisation, so my children can bike to their friends' but I can pretend I am a garden gnome.

Expand full comment
author

I hope you realize your dream of becoming a gnome, Ana. I tend to become fixated on getting out of the city when I live in one and then miss it when I don't!

Expand full comment

And that is the drama of human nature.

Expand full comment

How beautiful, Anna. And some of the details are just precious. Like "I looked at the place where his eye used to be, and looked away again.", and many others. Bellissimo.

Expand full comment
author

Grazie, Silvio

Expand full comment

Yay for Ralph! Yay for you! Boo to Rob.

Expand full comment
Jun 15Liked by Anna Schott

I love this, Anna. Thanks for sharing your sweet, kind heart (and your writing) with the world…

Expand full comment
author

Thank you, Steve! That's such a nice thing to say.

Expand full comment

Dude I feel you on this 1000%, but from a large feline perspective. Wouldn’t normally link in a comment but some of the similarities are uncanny, so oh well.

https://open.substack.com/pub/etallen/p/why-life-happens-to-us?r=30qkap&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Expand full comment
Jun 14Liked by Anna Schott

I love where you live-I mean I don't know where you live (probably where we drive just because. when we're in the area-I can be there for hours-want to be there-so beautiful)-but you describe it so that I think I know and feel I love.

Expand full comment
author

Thank you! (I live in Ojai)

Expand full comment
Jun 14Liked by Anna Schott

(almost guessed)

love Ojai

and-thank you

Expand full comment

Kindness makes things as close to perfect as they can be. Dogs have a gift for awakening kindness. You make the point with complete naturalness, as if you were taking the reader for a walk, just because. I loved this.

Expand full comment
author

Thank you, Rona

Expand full comment

Nicely done, Anna

Expand full comment

Lovely lovely.

Expand full comment
Jun 14Liked by Anna Schott

Is Rob, James’s ophthalmologist? Missing an eye? Great. Great.

Expand full comment