NO more SAD stories!

photography by Lily Ng Dung

Several posts back I wrote about being bummed about heartless people.
I told you about my first little dog, Vivian and about Hattie's previous owner and.....

Anyway I just wanted to say thank you for all the kind and caring comments. I truly appreciate them.

But I also feel kinda weird about it. It's not my intent to come off sounding like some saint or do-gooder. I worry that I'm not translating my thoughts and emotions into the proper words.

I just wanted to explain my exhausted mental state. I'm sure that any other animal lover would act the same as I have. I'm really not at all that special.

Also, my OTHER concern is that if this "stuff" sucks the Joy out of me, it can not be make for fun happy upbeat blog reading.

So, I will try to keep the sad stuff to a minimum.

That being said, I have several new stories from the last week that are just as bad...

but don't worry, I won't share them.

Instead I will talk about my niece Lily.

I've talked about her often and although I do have 2 other nieces whom I adore,

Lily is the one that shares my great love of animals and who also works with me.

I have now gotten her some more work hours at the vet clinic helping out the vet technicians.

She's assisting them and the vets, wherever she is needed.

My hope is that she will eventually decide to go into the Vet Tech Program and get certification.

She is very kind and caring and so attentive to the animals needs. I think she would perfect.

On her first day in this new position, she had to help with a little poodle that came in from the Humane Society. It had been running loose and then out into the street where it was hit by a car.

(That's one of the stories I won't be sharing.) Yes, the week was just full of not so happy stuff.

Instead I will share photos that Lily took when she and her family drove to Racine, WI a few weeks ago.

photography by Lily Ng Dung

I have always thought that she has a great eye for photography.

But she just dismisses my encouragements.

I have even bought her some books for Christmas a couple of years back about dog photography when she seemed to be a bit interested and while she flipped through the pages, she never actually read them.

I told her that we should take a class together on Photography but that's hard to do since we work opposite hours most of the time.

Then I told her to just take the class and then teach me what she's learned and she just laughed.

OK, back to the the Racine pictures. So, the family goes to Racine all the time.

Her mom (my sister) and dad lived up there when they were young and had first met. (Sometimes they even talk about moving back up to the area).

Apparently Lily had told her old dog Hank, that after she graduated high school, that she would take him up to see the lake.

She realizes this could be his last summer.

photography by Lily Ng Dung

Hank is one of those wonderful dogs. The kind that has been perfect from day one.

Hank is now an old boy but he still gets around by himself although he's a bit wobbly and slow.

Lily is very close to him since they have grown up together. 

I remember how she was just a tiny kid and fell and cut her lip open and they had to rush her to the emergency room to get it stitched up and she was crying and saying something and my sister had the Doctor stop for a moment to try figure out what Lily was crying for. 

Finally the semi-coherent words came from her bloodied swollen lip.

"I need Hank. I need Hank." she was pleading.

My sister calmed her with the promise that they would soon be back home with Hank.

Hank has always been there for her. 

So when Lily announced to the family of her planned trip, they loaded up both of the cars and headed to Racine.

Lily took these photos with her Point and Shoot camera.

No editing or cropping.

She knows nothing about photography and I love these photos.

I tell her that if she had a GOOD camera and a little bit of knowledge that she could be a professional.

She just replied, "Nah, too much competition, everyone wants to be a photographer".

I will try not to push her.

It's hard for me not to do that, especially since my own father frowned on anything creative and wanted me to be a secretary.

OK, this post is probably bordering along the lines of "Sad".

photography by Lily Ng Dung

I'll try to do better next time.