Sometimes the best thing to do is hug a dog. They don’t mind. They understand how hard life can be and they just take it laying down. Like it’s their job or something.
When Kai is trying to get one of his 15 naps in, I will crawl up behind him and descend on him the way a soldier dives onto a grenade to save his mates. And like the act of a soldier, it takes a lot of courage in our society to stop working long enough to spoon a dog. People stare. They are thinking “Why is he not working!” And I don’t care because life is not about work. It is about love. But to push back against society and say “no!” to a life of endless work and sleep cycles is an act of great courage and will be what melts our cold, exhausted hearts so that they feel again.
I know plenty of people who get their identity from their work. I know others who self-anesthetize through their work. And I know still others whose work keeps their demons tired. And I suppose that has been the case for me at times. But I am trying to find the courage to rest.