Raju look-alike | Photo Credit imaging furballs

I have always loved dogs. Growing up, my parents didn’t allow me to have pets, but stray dogs are pretty common In India, so I just “adopted” a bunch of them. I gave them names, played with them, and made sure they were fed every day. The dogs there are a much more wild than the domesticated dogs we’re used to and you don’t usually associate with strays, much less bring them in your house. I was particularly fond of one of the dogs, Raju. He was the alpha dog of the neighborhood, and he was fiercely protective of me. He had nothing but tail wags for me, and I absolutely loved the big guy. Then one day he got sick and started acting strange–and everyone knows when a dog starts acting that way it has rabies. All rabid dogs want to do is bite you and then you have to get 13 shots -this- big, directly in your belly button… because, you know, that’s what happens.

The last time I saw Raju, he was limping in the street, looking exhausted and hungry. He saw me from the corner of his eye, turned around and started running towards me. I freaked out, ran into the house and closed the door, and never saw him again. He likely died soon after, alone in a street corner somewhere. I was 10. 18 years later, I feel the same guilt I did that day. He was my friend and I abandoned him when he needed me most.

Over the years, we’ve taken in lots of other animals. Our pack currently has three dogs, two cats and a lizard. We’re the house in our neighborhood that all the stray cats and squirrels and birds come to because they know they’ll find food. We’ve gone out of our way to make sure our home is one where all critters are welcome–big or small, healthy or sick. I enjoy every minute of it and would not have it any other way, though a part of me feels that maybe if I keep doing this, that some day I won’t feel as bad about what happened with Raju, but I don’t think things work like that. I don’t think the guilt of what happened with Raju is ever going to go away, but the least I can do is make sure my kid doesn’t have a regret like that.

A comic inspired by one of Jack’s favorite books, Every Fridayby Dan Yaccarino.

The first nectarine from the tree Jack and I planted together. It was delicious!

Jack has been going to Prelude Music Classes since he was 10 weeks old, and it is the highlight of our Saturdays. Every semester the class has two concerts, where they bring in musicians to play live music for the kids. We went to one of the concerts last weekend, and Jack had a really great time.