Animal crackers

This post is, pure and simple, a tribute to the animals in my life. I grew up in a house full of pets. My childhood would have been very different without their presence. Pepper the dog. Tinsel the calico cat. Natty Gan the beta fish. Jake the parakeet. Mac and Susie the box turtles. Ma-ki-a the canary. Maxi the gerbil. Hamilton the hamster. Sandy the golden retriever/cocker spaniel mix. Hermit crabs. Jumping beans. Strays. These are all gone now, but their memory remains.

Now, we have Flipper the dog and Dodger the cockatiel. And a stray Tom cat named Oliver who sleeps in a ghetto we made on the front porch. They make each day a little more joyful, relieving stress with a nudge of the nose or a pretty song. Though I'm sure I take their presence for granted sometimes, I am grateful God gave us critters to care for and laugh about.


Flipper the dog stayed faithfully by my feet when I was writing my novel.


Dodger bird gets in on some pancake action.


Oliver our stray cat plays with yarn and settles in for the night in his cat ghetto.