Tag Archives: kali
My oldest girl
It is strange and terrible to be here again. I’d let Latte off lead and she made it halfway up the stairs before her legs gave out and she toppled. It wouldn’t be the last time. She seems, at 13.5 years old, to have failing … Read more
Homecoming
I couldn’t have met Mary at any other point in my life and had it come to anything. That first time, that time in the bookstore, had to be a bust because I wasn’t ready. I like to think about that though. That we’re given … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged boundaries, brokenness, character, control, dogs, grace, grief, Hazel, heart, heartbreak, injury, joy, kali, latte, love, mary, memory, mindfulness, power, relationships, safe, savor, self, shame, simple, story, women, Writing
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More apparent
I dreamed I had my dog in my arms and was crossing an angry river. Kali wasn’t moving. And I should have been scared — the water above my breasts — but she wasn’t heavy and I wasn’t cold. Still, I woke up crying.
I … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged brokenness, grace, grief, heart, heartbreak, hedgehog, injury, jack gilbert, kali, mary, memory, Michiko, mindfulness, mother, poem, relationships, safe, self, story, women, Writing
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Careful
We got a memory-card reader for our camera, and it turned out there were some old photos on a few of the cards. Look at us! Younger. Often with a blown out reddish corruption just to the left of us as the previous camera failed. … Read more
The green dog bowl
For weeks, Kali’s bowl sat on the step stool, unused. What could I do with it? Empty, like a gaping mouth, every day. Mary thought we should make it into art. But I couldn’t conceive of a way to do that and keep it intact. … Read more
I sent you a card
This has been a week of casual kindness; they all are, of course, but sometimes I need it more. I need casual kindness.
I need my boss to tell me he’s convinced I can build rocket ships.
I need my client to say he never … Read more
Kali
My boss loves to remind us, “Nobody gets out of here alive.”
The house feels different. Lighter. And bewildering. I walk through the rooms and they seem empty. Latte sleeps close by. She is baffled the way I am baffled. We look, everywhere, for the … Read more
Dog days
I won’t lie to you. I’m a train wreck. My dog can’t stand if I don’t support her hips. I lift her and carry her outside, hold her, and then lift her to come back in. I lay her down. I can feel her heart … Read more
Wait
She has been my girl for 13 years. That’s what I’m thinking, sitting on the floor, petting a tremendous amount of hair from her coat, and sobbing into my coffee. Her hind legs have stopped working and she can’t stand. Can’t walk. She’s fish-like, and … Read more
Posted in Writing
Tagged brokenness, character, dogs, grief, heartbreak, injury, kali, latte, love, mindfulness, mobile vet, mother, relationships, story, train, women, Writing
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