Where Dreams Begin

Remember what it felt like to have endless possibilities? Yeah, you were probably twelve and dreaming about all the adventures your adult life would hold. If you were anything like me, you were trying on careers in your mind: saving lives as an emergency room doctor, working as an interpreter at the UN, making movies, playing your favorite sport professionally, teaching to eager students, photographing wild animals for National Geographic, designing wedding gowns, traveling to war-torn countries as a journalist, pounding the gavel as a judge, writing novels in the mountains, drawing up building plans. You name it, I probably imagined doing it.

The adventures of real life have taken a different form than my childhood imaginings. The cold hard fact is that getting good at anything requires an incredible amount of dedication, hours of work – doing the not-that-exciting-part of the career you’re working in. (I know, sad isn’t it?) It’s not as easy to try on careers as I’d hoped.

But what I want to know is, how can you choose just one thing when there are so many exciting possibilities?

You might wonder how a nice lady like me ended up – for now – in the law (which is not my passion, by the way, but enjoyable at times and always challenging)? Well, it was passion of another sort. You see, the man of my dreams happens to have a single-minded passion for the law. If he was going to be in my life (and I couldn’t imagine life any other way!), so was the law.

Ok, here’s my domestic connection. Dreaming up the many possible adventures for my life, and feeling like I could do any of those things if I put my mind to it, all stemmed from my domestic life: loving parents, a warm home, family meals every night, plenty of clothes to wear, weekly trips to the library, homework time, discussions around the dinner table, reading countless books under the covers, bedtime prayers.

So maybe through all this rambling what I really want to say is this: what I really love is home because home is where dreaming begins.

Home with Animals

Love of animals has been a defining characteristic of mine since childhood. Thanks to my kind and patient parents, animals have always been part of my domestic life. I’ve lived with cats, fish, rabbits, various reptiles (not my choice), and finally dogs.

The first Christmas gift of my married life was a blonde cairn terrier named Toby. Toby was my first friend in Minnesota (not including my hubby, who used his persuasive skills to convince the landlord to let us get Toby in the first place). To set up this gift, I should tell you that I was pretty much an emotional wreck when we moved to Minnesota. No friends. No family. And lots of cold. When Paul told me I was getting a puppy for Christmas. I cried. Not a few sweet tears, people. I mean, bawling, blubbering mess. Ridiculous.

Thinking back, Toby was the end of a pet drought (darn those college dorm rules). In a way, adding him to the mix was like getting a piece of myself back.

Toby’s six years old now and never lonely since we added Reese to the family just a year later. I’ve learned endless lessons from these two characters. I thought I’d share just a few:

1.      It’s completely appropriate to become wildly excited about the smallest pleasures – like taking a walk, seeing someone you love even though they’ve only been away a few hours.

2.      Forgive like it’s the easiest thing in the world. My pups are incapable of hating, holding a grudge, or feeling sorry for themselves.

3.      Curiosity is the ultimate cure to boredom. Imagine exploring the possibilities of everyday household items – like toilet paper or sharpie markers – using only your mouth! Oh, the mess you could make.

4.      Don’t be afraid to ask for attention. Whether you’re looking for a pat on the head or a snuggle, you should let your requests be known.

5.      All we need is love. Treasure the moments you get love, and make your life’s mission to love everyone you meet (if you’re Reese) or at least those who feed you (Toby)

P.S. Dear Bryn, I hope this qualifies as answering the question. Here's my shout-out to your excellent design blog: http://brynalexandra.blogspot.com/2011/01/january-giveaway.html#disqus_thread