Goodbye Is The Goal

My heart broke a little on Saturday.

I said goodbye to our latest foster puppy, Davis.

Davis came to me 3 weeks ago, along with his brother, Boone, as "temporary fosters" for my friend who would be on vacation. I ended up becoming his real foster when it was clear that it was best to separate the two puppies.

The puppies, 4 in total, were found crammed in a small box, left in the woods to starve and slowly die. Luckily, they were found and brought to rescue to get healthy, strong, and socialized to get ready to be adopted.

People say to me often that their "rescued dog" is so grateful. These puppies were some of the most grateful dogs that I had ever been blessed to know.
Each day they seemed to marvel that they were warm and dry and that there was a steady supply of food. Dogs are grateful because they don't dwell. They are resilient because they live in the moment, dealing with what is now.
My job was to make NOW great for this pup.

Showing him that humans are good and kind and loving. Allowing him to grow, move, play and thrive, taught him that life is good--that he is good.
Helping to raise a "good dog," to then give that dog to another wonderful family to bring them joy and love, for me, is the ultimate "paying it forward."
Davis, who will be known as "Luke" from now on, is enjoying life on Long Island with wonderful parents, 2 human siblings, tons of relatives, and a big backyard.
They drove 3 hours on Saturday to come and get him and 3more hours to bring him home.
The picture you see above is of me kissing him goodbye.
You may even be able to see that I am crying a little.
When you foster, "goodbye" is the goal.

So, although my heart broke a little on Saturday, it BROKE OPEN.

The heart is an organ, but it is made of muscle; and, muscles only grow if they are forced to.
The mechanics of growing muscle is that when you put them under load--like weight lifting--and work the muscles, you are actually causing micro-tears in the fibers, which the body then repairs, resulting in bigger muscles to better handle the stimulus that caused the initial damage.
I like to think that fostering is making my heart bigger, stronger, and more resilient.

Wishing you a huge heart to handle any and all stimuli that life brings your way.

With so much love,
Kari