From a Little Dog

When we first saw Mimi (then called Salt), she was quivering. I imagine she was scared, being abandoned by a second family because of her uncontrollable seizures. The veterinarian’s report stated she had experienced 18 seizures in just a few days. Reportedly, the children of the family surrendering the little girl Boston Terrier were weeping as they relinquished control. She looked so vulnerable at 17 pounds and shaking uncontrollably. We knew nothing of how to care for an epileptic dog, but we could not turn away and brought her to our home. She was three years old.

She refrained from seizing for at least a week, and then they came. She rocked and screamed and frothed, losing control of her body. Watching her convulse and hoop and holler is terrifying.  Eventually, the involuntary movement-tsunami stops and she starts pacing, sometimes while still blinded by the seizure.  Occasionally, if we are not careful, she has falls down the carpeted stairs in the family room. Sometimes, the wandering lasts for hours.  After the worst of the seizures, it can take a couple of days until she regains her sweet, affectionate personality. We have become accustomed to her pattern. She will go from 3 to 8 weeks with no seizures, and then will have from two to eight spells over one to three days. Mimi takes 20 pills per day.

Why do we let her go on like this?  Because the majority of the time, she is playful, loving and loyal. Mimi, at around 10 years old still throws her toys in the air and playfully catches them. She loves nestling in a lap to have her back and neck stroked. Every day when I come home from work, she jumps in my lap and smothers me with kisses, finishing by collapsing lovingly into my lap. She follows us from room to room. She is loving and playful as can be when not in the monthly grips of a seizure.

Many times a veterinarian has suggested that her condition will deteriorated and has offered the option of euthanasia, but each time she bounces back. Last week, post-seizure, her back legs grew weak after a particularly strong bout. The vet wanted to conduct a CT scan to determine the neurological cause. We declined. There is no cure for Mimi’s ailment beyond the handfuls of pills she downs daily. Sure enough, within a day the strength in her legs returned.  She is playing, and kissing and loving again.

For one or two days a month, Mimi is unwell.  The doctors say she does not feel the seizures and she is not in pain.  For the rest of the month, she leads a damn good dog’s life. For now, the good more than outweighs the bad. The peaks more than compensate for the valleys. Such a sweet, caring soul should not be extinguished because of an imperfection. We are all imperfect.

We Really Can Find Honorable People Today

I felt deflated on November 8, 2016. I has expected more out of people in the election. I was naive. People hadn’t changed, Really, it was just that power shifted and anger changed. Then, in 2017, the Missouri Legislature screwed Missouri workers by making it harder for workers who have been victim to unlawful discrimination to get justice.  I became further disillusioned. Yet, the brave and honorable victims continued to fight on.

When I worry that I will discover the worst about people, I oftentimes learn the best about people. Juries have surprised me by their care, concern and compassion for litigants when I fear that apathy will prevail.  In one of my last race discrimination trials, I steeled myself for a defense verdict.  The jury voted unanimously for my deserving, brave client in just 2 hours. For awhile, my faith in justice and the fairness of others was restored.  That renewed faith in humanity buoyed me for months.

Then things come out of the mouth of the blowhard in the White House, and I forget that most people want to do right, be fair and be kind. I cannot predict our political future, but I still believe in the kindness of our brothers and sisters on this earth.

Two weeks ago, I lost my iPad at a hotel ATM in Washington, D.C..   I did not know where I had left it and I was sure it was stolen. I use my iPad all day, every day, for work and leisure.  I was surprised how dependent I am on this machinery, but I am. I told the hotel manager, filled out a report, and went to bed convinced I needed to buy a replacement. I was angry when I went to bed.

The next morning, we promptly headed to the airport sans iPad. Once seated outside the gate, I received a call from the hotel and I took it. I learned someone had turned the iPad into the lost and found. It was found at the ATM. since I was already at the airport to return home, the manager sent a shuttle driver to come bring me the iPad (which I am using as I write this blog) to the airport. They went above and beyond to help me.

THIS IS THE SEASON OF GIVING, OR SO THEY SAY. BUT, I SUBMIT THAT EVERYDAY PEOPLE GIVE TO OTHERS ALL OF THE TIME. GIVING IS HUMAN NATURE.


So, maybe some people in power irk me. Maybe they do not care about the injured, the poor, or others different from them.  But the kind people usually prevail. We just need to be sure to support the caring ones, and not the others.