My absolute favorite thing to write about is the way dogs and people interact with one another. Zinnia is in heat, and Maria has decided that she and Zinnia are sisters now, sharing the common experience of women and their sometimes bloody cycles of life.
Maria is proud of Zinnia, and full of empathy. For her part, Zinnia seems unmoved and not especially reflective of this bond. But she goes along, she is agreeable.
Bud is delighted that Zinnia is in heat, although it will do him little good.
Maria wrote a wonderful blog post – Zinnia Has Her Period – and she explains that she wanted Zinnia to have the support and understanding that she didn’t get when she had her first periods.
She is very uncomfortable putting diapers or those demeaning napkins on Zinnia, she wants her to keep her dignity. Zinnia takes her diapers off almost the same second they get put on.
Zinnia is pleased to make Maria so happy and loves the conversations. It is a lovely thing that she is not made to feel disgusting or repulsive in any way.
We often use dogs in this way – to reveal and enrich our own understanding of our lives and experiences.
I love seeing this new sisterhood meme, it lifts the heart.
She is in her second week of heat, but the bloodiest part seems over. I am not invited to participate in these sister-to-sister conversations. But Zinnia is a lucky dog.
Maria says she feels closer to Zinnia than ever before. Zinnia is banned from our bed at night, she’s in a crate downstairs. A pig’s ear or two makes her happy.
Maria forget to tell me that when she had what she thinks was her last period, she went out into the woods and buried the tampon under one of her favorite trees. Zinnia came along.
I said I was surprised that she didn’t tell me about this moment, she said she just forget. That is what life is like on Bedlam Farm, a woman planting a tampon out under a tree in the woods is just another one of those moments, not even worth mentioning.
Okay, enough dogs I’m getting my own heart lifted today in Albany. Heading out to the hospital. Can’t wait to see what I’ve missed when get back, hopefully, tomorrow.