Oliver

As the Traveler who has lost his way, 

throughs his reins over the horses neck

and trusts to the instincts of the animal 

to find his road, so must we do with 

the divine animal that carries us through

this world. 

Ralph Waldo Emerson

    My daughter has this quote up in her kitchen window. So fitting today as I'm house and dog sitting for her. So fitting because her dog Oliver, an enormous, mixed, gentle soul has helped all of us through our grief. 

   Today I have gratitude for Oliver.  He reminds me having three legs doesn't mean an unhappy life.  I describe my loss as I have lost one of my arms;  loss as powerful, disorienting, unbalancing. I am still wandering.

    And today, as the snow rains and falls through the too warm air, here is Oliver playing outside and saying, so what? You can live well on three. There is this; Oliver is conscious of his loss, on slippery stairs, with unstable landscapes. He is cautious, hopeful. Oliver, he chooses happiness.