I received a Facebook message on October 16, 2019 from the animal control officer in our little town of Ledyard. “Hi Peter. I just want to put a bug in your. There is a Samoyed at Norwich Animal Control. They got custody of her today. Her owner died. She came in with a cat; seems like a sweet girl.” I called our animal control officer, “Can you pull her from Norwich?” “Yes, I can do that
Within you, exists a power to change lives. I beg of you to respond when someone calls to you for help. This morning, a friend reached out to my wife, Cathy, with an urgent plea. “Is Peter available today? My neighbor is pet-sitting two dogs; one of them got out last night and she can’t get it back. She’s an absolute mess and needs help.” “Yes. We can help as soon as he’s done with
In late 2018, I spent an afternoon by myself getting back to the earth and enjoyed an uneventful stroll along the unmarked footpaths of a state forest. I came upon this ambitious plan-in-progress of a beaver. This artwork of Mother Nature made me pause and reflect. Why did the beaver start this project? How long will it take to finish? What made it choose this tree versus the one closer to the river bank? What will t
It was 10:45 pm on a Saturday night when my cell phone rang. I told Cathy, “It’s Pam. She’s probably butt-dialing. If it’s important she’ll leave a message.” 1 missed call. 1 new voicemail: Pam sounded distraught. “Peter. My Destiny is gone. I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know where to look. Please call me when you get this.” After I brushed my teeth
June 21, 2017 The iPhone in my pocket vibrated and startled me. The notification read: 1 missed call and voicemail. Oh, it was Lynn. Maybe she needs us to take Tux for a few days. Meet AKC Champion Mystic Oz’s Formal Affair (Tux, for short.) Lynn’s voice was choppy and filled with despair. “Peter, please give me a call as soon as you can. We are at the vet with Tux right now.” I called
The other day, a bald eagle soared into my life and landed gracefully in a nearby tree. I could not see it very well while it rested on a high limb that still clings to its rust-colored leaves of Autumn. I watched in awe as the biggest of all birds capable of flight flew away with ease and grace. Why did I just see you? What do you have to teach me? Where are you going? Whose spirit are you carrying? With curiosity a
I announced to my fellow landscaper, “I’ve never seen a praying mantis fly before. That was pretty cool!” I took a few moments to snap some photos on my iPhone and went back to work. The following day, I was trimming bushes again at the same apartment complex, but in a different location. What did I see? You guessed it. A praying mantis which looked INCREDIBLY similar to the one I saw the day before
The poaching of Cecil, the lion, has sparked public outrage and not just in the animal-loving community. It saddened me to learn that the world lost a beautiful animal because of the greed of a few humans. I don’t understand the greed that lives inside of the American dentist. He has repeatedly felt the need to assert his false supremacy over exotic animals by killing them. The hunt leaders, who willing accepte
In my post, The Journey Of A Thousand Miles, I wrote, “I believe we should live fully, be awake and aware, while traveling on our journeys and not be so concerned about the destination.” This evening, while sitting by our fire pit, with our pack of dogs, my muse delivered this post to me, so here it goes. I’m becoming well skilled in the art of rolling with the changes, because I’ve learned
Having not yet fully recovered from the loss of our own Allie Boo, I learned today that the world lost another friend. And so I am meeting with my therapist again, this blog. Meet Kiya, a soft-hearted husky mix. She belonged to a good friend of Cathy and me. Although she was cautious and careful, there weren’t many dogs, kitties, or people she didn’t like. She was everybody’s friend. She was that ki