My dear Lovey!

"You're a beautiful vessel of love." I'd whisper. "You were meant for me and I for you." I'd say as I hugged and snuggled you closely.

I imagine going to a shelter on a whim one day after a quick errand thinking, "today's the day!". I see myself deciding at that moment, "I'm ready to find the one." Or maybe that's not how it goes.

Perhaps I'm more methodical about it. Maybe I allow my intuitive spiritual energy to choose. The moment might look like going to the shelter for a week or two, consecutively, to spend time and allow the energy to confirm the one for me.

Oh, but wait. Better yet, maybe I'll walk in and let them choose me. If that happens; I wouldn't be surprised if I walked out adopting 5 new pets in one day.

Honestly, I'm not quite sure what that special day will look like for us but I do know that it will be special without a doubt! I enjoy making days special for anyone I can. Whether it's my husband, my silly kids, a stranger on the street, or even a stray animal who didn't know where their next meal was coming from.

It's important to share love and light whenever and wherever you can. It's like the song by Jackie DeShannon, "What the world needs now, is love, sweet love; It's the only thing that there's just too little of. No not just for some, but for everyone." I have no desire nor intention to exclude pets, plants, animals, or insects from that notion. That is why; if I can make a moment or day special or great for anyone or anything, I will.

So, naturally, that applies to my future adopted pets as well. Everyone needs that light and a reminder that they are worthy of happiness, love, and kindness. When it comes to something positive, I always say, "Who better than you? What time better than now?" So the answer to positive change is always me, and the time is always now! This world can be very cruel but it doesn't always have to be. If we all just decide to choose differently and choose to be better every day, even when it is hard, we could truly change our world.

I want you to be honest, can you think of a time when you were feeling your absolute lowest? Did you feel alone? Were you ever physically surrounded by people and still felt by yourself? Did you feel undeserving or self-loathing at all? Well, I believe animals have the emotional capacity to feel the same way in extreme conditions or circumstances.

Now, think back. What if in the depths of that moment someone sought you out and chose to love you intentionally AND unconditionally? Without knowing a thing about you, your history, where you came from, or even your past mistakes; they just chose you for you. Randomly but purposefully they just decide to pick you up, lift your head, take you home, make space for you, and love you without conditions or limits. Oh yeah, and in the process, they hug you and tell you, "it will be okay, you are home now." Can you see how a gesture like that can teach you that not only do you deserve to be loved but you deserve to love yourself just as much? At that point, it's like you've been born again!

I assume love and kindness to that magnitude would cause anyone or anything to have a dramatic paradigm shift in their world. You slowly but surely learn to embrace yourself and your deficits to a point where they no longer affect you the way they once did. You would likely trust your ability to live again, full out!

That's the kind of love I plan to share! That is also why it is truly important for me to adopt, not shop for my pet to be. At a shop, they have a multitude of options that adoption centers just cannot compare to. This is also the reason I plan to adopt teens in the future but I'll save that for another story. I want to seek out the most spiritually wounded pet I can find, adopt them and love them back to life! Why not, right? I've been blessed enough to find the strength to love myself back to life and it is invigorating. The thought of being able to give thanks to the universe by pouring that same energy into a helpless animal in need speaks to the inner child in me.

I used to ask my mom for money every day in order to buy the homeless guy on the corner, down the street from our house, a fish sandwich to make sure he ate something well and didn't go completely hungry that day. To me, it was a way of letting him know that someone in the world cared. My mother told me from the age of about two I had been the one to always find ways to give her money away. Whether it was feeding someone, donating it somewhere, or buying something that would help someone who needed it. It's not that we had very much, I just always noticed there were people and animals that had far less.

Animals deserve that same care and compassion. I have decided to start a tradition with my family called "Save a Pet". Every time a child in our household turns 10 years of age they get to adopt their very own pet of their choosing. This allows them to save a pet while also teaching compassion for life, responsibility, and accountability in their childhood. I have one son that will be turning 9 soon and another that just turned 6 and then there is my husband and myself. I'd lead by example of course; starting the tradition of first, then dad, and the boys to follow. So, in the span of the next four years, we would have saved four pets by giving them homes and impacted many more by giving time, love, and sharing our tradition to inspire many other homes to do the same. When human beings come together we can change the world by being intentional and loving with a purpose.

I don't want to save just one animal. I want to save many across the globe; but, I know it starts with one.

I even know what I'd name him or her. Whether it was a dog with two legs, a cat with one eye, or a bird with no wings; their name would be Lovey!

That's right, I care for you so much. I've already named you. I'm coming to you soon, my dear Lovey! Don't you worry, you will be coming home soon!

- and together we'll impact the world. XOXOX