dogs, death, and writing

sunrise:  6:48

This girl can be counted on for companionship even after the cows come home.  I couldn't shoo her away if I tried (especially if I tried to do it with a stick).

One of the problems with dogs is that they don't live long enough.  Although, I suppose they do a pretty fine job of teaching us about dying too.  They get old and infirm, lame or sick, but they just sigh and carry on.  Our old lab, Ella, lay panting in her bed during her last few days of life, fighting lung cancer.  But even if she was too tired to raise her head, when you walked in the room that big ropy tail would start to wag - thump thump against the floor.

And we learn what it is to grieve the loss of a dear friend.  It hurts, it doesn't get easier right away, but eventually you learn to live with the happiness they gave you tucked away in a corner of your heart.

My three canine friends all seem quite healthy for now, so I'll move on to today's cool cloud formations.  Some time I'll learn to make my camera reproduce them better.  Cloud cover was thick, and there was only the faintest hint of sunlight at one tiny slit on the horizon.

And the pond ice is receding slowly, which means we will soon have perpetually wet dogs.

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I thought daylight savings time would be irrelevant to my mornings, seeing as how my arisings are based on the sun, not on the clock.  But because of the clock it is easier to justify an earlier bedtime, so that will be nice!

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This past weekend was the last quiet one we'll have for a month.  I dove into work on my book, 12-14 hours worth.  Felt great, and I'm glad to learn that my admiration for Rachel Field hasn't diminished.

I have always loved reading writers' memoirs and essays about writing.  Stephen King has a great one, "On Writing."  Amy Tan wrote "The Opposite of Fate, Memories of a Writing Life."  I've also read many shorter articles about writers' lives that talk about how they worked, what drove them, etc.  Sometimes I've been discouraged when I read about people like Madeline L'Engle, who talked about being so driven to write since she was a child that she could not keep herself from writing even if she tried.

An English teacher friend of mine reassured me in his usual outspoken manner - "That's bullshit!  I know a lot of writers who literally have to tie themselves to their chair."

Right now I'm reading a funny book by humorist wordsmith Richard Lederer, and he gave me my most recent inspiration about writing.  He talked about writing, particularly the writing of a book being lonely and hard work.  Just because he's a writer, he says, doesn't mean he is anti-social.  In fact, he loves being with people, conversing, interacting.  This was in the context of his explaining why he actually enjoys whirlwind book tours after finally finishing long months sitting alone with his keyboard.

So that's what I'll focus on - those whirlwind book tours that I'll go on after I'm through with this book.  In the meantime, it's nice to know that no matter how distant I become, or how many hours I neglect them while I sit at the computer, my three doggie friends will always leap to wagging attention when I'm ready to emerge and engage the day.