Isn’t it amazing what animals can teach us? I’m a Foster Volunteer with Labrador Rescuers in San Diego and the day after Christmas, I opened my home (and my heart) to foster Bingo, a beautiful black lab from the Morena Valley shelter, where the animals sometimes only have 72 hours to live.
Bingo had already been in another foster home, and had a bad case of separation anxiety. Poor guy– in just two weeks he had lost his family, been dumped at a shelter, been whisked away to our vet, then the kennel, on to his first foster home, and then to my home, with 3 other dogs already there.
My kids and I poured on the love, but Bingo’s world was still upside down, although each day his confidence grew and he began to play more, smile more (yes, dogs smile!), and frolic with our other dogs.
Now the hard part: the Meet n Greets, where I introduced Bingo to prospective families to see if they were a match. He always knew something was up, because he’d stick really close to me. I’d tell him to have faith, because I could see the big picture for his life, whereas he could only see his current circumstance, and the scary unknown. I knew how hard I was working to find him the perfect family, and turned down a lot of interested people who would have provided a good home, but not a great home for him.
So many times I’d feel his fear and uncertainly… and thought, this is so much like our profession right now, with so many changes, uncertainties and unknowns. People all across America are losing jobs, losing income, losing homes. But the fact is, when you have faith, you know there’s a master plan for your life, and everything will be fine.
Happy ending: a truly wonderful family appeared and finally, Bingo instantly knew that this was the right family for him. All those weeks of worrying, wondering and waiting, and suddenly, the right people appeared. And that’s a lesson for me to always keep the faith!
Tell Others What You're Reading!
Connect with me!
