Just another day to give thanks

Yesterday I learned that the love-dog-of-my-life is dying. This really shouldn’t have been a surprise. Because all of our dogs are dying. And so are we.

So, after curling up on her bed and having a good cry, I decided to make the most of the days or weeks or months that lie ahead. And to be grateful for the dog days gone by.

Because isn’t that all we can do?

It’s been a minute since July 4, when I wrote this post about Independence Day. In it, I referenced Michael Singer’s book The Untethered Soul: If we learn to let go of what we think life should be, we can be free. If we remain centered with the small things, we will be fine when the really bad stuff happens. We can enjoy the life we have.

The Stoics said the same thing. More than two thousand years ago.

Today is Thanksgiving Day. Depending on how we frame the day—to use a Stoic principle—it’s either a beloved day for eating turkey with friends and family, or it’s a reminder of the exploitation and genocide of native peoples.

Actually, it’s both.

But more to the point, today is just another day to wag more and bark less. To express our gratitude. To live as though we could die at any minute.

The Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius wrote: You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.

So, around the table today, why not ask ourselves a new question:

 If our days are numbered (which they are)—and our one wild and precious life is brief (which it is, to paraphrase the poet Mary Oliver)—how should we proceed?

For me the path is clear.

I’ll keep Hacking Away at Happiness.

I’ll go way out on the love limb. Not just with the new man in my life, but with every other sentient being who looks me in the eye.

And I’ll knit on the sofa with my dog in my lap, until it’s time to let her go.