A midwinter’s night pause

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My article for the winter issue of 3rd Act Magazine is out: “A New Leash on Life: Fostering senior dogs” – and it’s a topic that is VERY close to my heart. If you want an “all natural,” almost sure-fire way to beat depression, I highly recommend fostering or adopting an older dog. Sure, they won’t be around forever, but in the meantime, you’ll receive so much love.

We’ve started fostering-round-two after having to put down our first foster, Riley, in October. Our new foster dog, the irrepressible and still somewhat rotund, Jackson, knows that part of his job is to heal our broken hearts.

Sure adopting a dog (or ferret, cat, or puppy) may not change the world, but if it can put a smile on your face and love in your heart, it might change you.

What does it mean to take real accountability for your life, not just for you, but for your place in the world, and for how your family has impacted others? These days, when few political figures seem to want to take responsibility for the world’s woes, I found an amazing example of accountability in this TED talk with the mother of the infamous Columbine shooter. She inspired me by how she learned to stand tall after tragedy knocked her low.

For Valentine’s Day, I apologized to Marie Kondo for my skepticism around her principles of tidying. Choosing to keep what brings your joy may be a good mantra for life, and I find that the more I explore the idea, the more is revealed, Call it “Beyond clutter.”

In our new foray into dog training, I’m learning about the clicker training approach. It is so positive and specific I thought it might be used with humans. I didn’t find out there was a book on that subject until my friend, reader and horse trainer, Kyra Gautesen, lent me her book, I love learning from readers!

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