Volpone
Zombie Hunter
Gotta park this somewhere while it is fresh in my brain and I feel like FB is tired of me whining about my dog. Lots of people have had lots of dogs die. Man up.
Yeah, whatever.
Thinking about why my dog's death has rattled me more than anything else up to and including my parents' deaths. I had a bunch of stuff I was going to step through, but it all boils down to 1) spending so much more time with the dog than with any people and 2) how much more basic and primal a dog's love and attention goes. I mean, by many arguments, a human loves me more than a dog. When I got into a bumblebee nest as a toddler, my Mom literally saved my life--while getting stung a number of times herself. And I suspect my Mom or Dad would die for me, I absolutely know my dog would've. Without a moment's hesitation. That's the other thing: humans have other things. VFW, Solitaire, coffee with the boys NPR Chapter A Day at lunch, whatever. Dogs have 1 thing: You. Total, complete, and absolute unhesitating no strings attached love and devotion--to the point of pain at being separated from you. That's another thing: The sheer level of primal emotion. I've seem my Mom happy. My Dad too. But not often. I can think of 1 time my Mom was completely and totally happy. About the same with Dad. With The Dog? Easy. Twice a day, every day. Going on patrols were the best thing in the entire universe. Seeing the complete and utter joy she had about leaving the property to go patrol the neighborhood....even though she got to do it twice a day, she was so overjoyed by it EVERY GODDAMN TIME that it is just painful to think about. Love is more complex with humans. And so is death. There's an awareness and some level of dignity. With a dog love is simple and total. And death boils down to "LOVE MASTER. DO NOT WANT TO LEAVE." Humans cling to life because they fear death. Dogs cling to life because they don't want to fail in their job of protecting Master.
Yeah, whatever.
Thinking about why my dog's death has rattled me more than anything else up to and including my parents' deaths. I had a bunch of stuff I was going to step through, but it all boils down to 1) spending so much more time with the dog than with any people and 2) how much more basic and primal a dog's love and attention goes. I mean, by many arguments, a human loves me more than a dog. When I got into a bumblebee nest as a toddler, my Mom literally saved my life--while getting stung a number of times herself. And I suspect my Mom or Dad would die for me, I absolutely know my dog would've. Without a moment's hesitation. That's the other thing: humans have other things. VFW, Solitaire, coffee with the boys NPR Chapter A Day at lunch, whatever. Dogs have 1 thing: You. Total, complete, and absolute unhesitating no strings attached love and devotion--to the point of pain at being separated from you. That's another thing: The sheer level of primal emotion. I've seem my Mom happy. My Dad too. But not often. I can think of 1 time my Mom was completely and totally happy. About the same with Dad. With The Dog? Easy. Twice a day, every day. Going on patrols were the best thing in the entire universe. Seeing the complete and utter joy she had about leaving the property to go patrol the neighborhood....even though she got to do it twice a day, she was so overjoyed by it EVERY GODDAMN TIME that it is just painful to think about. Love is more complex with humans. And so is death. There's an awareness and some level of dignity. With a dog love is simple and total. And death boils down to "LOVE MASTER. DO NOT WANT TO LEAVE." Humans cling to life because they fear death. Dogs cling to life because they don't want to fail in their job of protecting Master.