My Kahuna

I have often wondered how I might sufficiently explain the love of an animal to someone who has never experienced the gift. Believe me, it is a gift–bestowed on the lucky. When an animal loves you and lets you love it back, you are given insights into one of the purest loves there is, one without judgment, jealousy, disappointment, conditions…anything we humans sometimes place on each other. Animals only want your love and attention–and some food, of course–but they return ten-fold what you give. Animals do not remember that you left them for the weekend or fed them three hours late. They don’t hold onto real or imagined slights. They still run to the door when you come home–even when you don’t deserve it. In return, they require extraordinarily little, to be honest, but they give freely. I lost one of mine today, and the damage is palpable.

Quote of the Day: “Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.” Anatole France