11/01/2022
January 9, 2022:
I spent last night in a house without dogs. I was completely alone in my own home and it felt wrong.
I often said after Judy died “Thank goodness for the dogs, because they give me a reason to get out of bed every morning”. I never questioned what life would have been like without them.
What I experienced was the feeling of being completely and utterly alone. I realized just what it must be like for a person who lives alone all the time: hearing only the noises of the traffic going by the house and the sounds of the refrigerator and the heating system cycling on and off in the silence.
There were no breathing sounds, no snoring, no sounds of a good dream, no creaking and groaning as a furry body changed position in the night: nothing but the sounds of loneliness personified.
There was no living presence in the house, just my own thoughts echoing around in the empty rooms.
Their absence made me realise just how much of the void they fill and the comfort their company provides. The knowledge that they are keeping watch over me makes sleep possible.
The good morning schnuffle nose asking me if I am awake and would I mind scratching a canine butt reminds me that another day has begun and, at least in my little world, means everything is as it should be.
I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Dave G.
