At first, the task was daunting and I was convinced that creative writing on a computer screen was somehow an oxymoron. In those first years, White Dog and I hand wrote our entries onto paper in actual diaries and then translated them to to the electronic page. We have a lovely collection of journals from those first years.
We didn't know the rules or the protocol of writing a blog. Neither of us was convinced it was something that would last long in our development so we were our own rulemakers when it came to what we did. When we ventured outside of our blogpage, it was intimidating...full of insider jokes, lots of photos and stories that often went out of their way to eliminate the human or home element.
I am not a photographer. That is Steve's job. It unnerved me at first that other blogs were full of photos and fantasy images and clever artwork; ours was merely words. White Dog even as a pup had a natural elan and confidence. "Do what you do best momma," she told me. "to me your words ARE pictures. Just tell our story and others will find us."
White Dog and I look back over ten years and realize we have witnessed a gradual but amazing shift. At first, all those years ago, this group told stories about their pets; now we share moments of our lives.
As our Blog Community matured, we became invested not just in fun photoshopped parties and adventures but in the everyday journeys of each other lives. We became unafraid to show our human faces and fit them into the context of what our dogs experienced. Our dogs brought us together but it was now more...a commitment to each other to share and to care.
Suddenly we we more than a community, we became a family whose power of the paw focused on healing sickness or ill fortunes, whose concern during the disasters of life united us to help in real connected ways. Fires, job losses, pup (kitty) and human sicknesses, death...the Blog Family reached out and lifted up.
The saddest times were those when a sweet friend departed for the Rainbow Bridge...that loss was felt...but so was the fear that we would lose the connection to that family and their journey forever.
Now, three thousand five hundred posts since that first day, we cannot imagine life without you all. NO WHERE have we ever found a group of so many extraordinary, giving and brave beings pulled together in one unified heartbeat. We are blessed and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of this.
You have traveled with one Little White Dog and I through joyful travel, finding our stride, sickness of all kinds, the hardest of times, the most wonderful of celebrations. You have cried and cheered with us as we suffered losses and became an Army. You have encouraged us to become Warriors in the fight to change the world and end disease. You have been supportive and understanding when WD and I were overwhelmed. But mostly, you listened...did not judge, and you simply cared.
3,500 posts. It has been an amazing journey. If you had asked White Dog and I the script back on that first day, it would have looked nothing like it has been written. Thank you.
