I’ve been working on a few posts for this site and I keep it a little old school and hand write my notes and rough drafts. For some reason, it is just easier to write down my ideas on paper instead of a computer. It feels more intimate and natural. Problem with writing down ones ideas on paper… it’s vulnerable to the impulses of other inhabitants in the house.
Oliver
My lovable and impetuous bulldog found my notebook lying on the floor when I was away at work. Being bored, lonely or both he took it upon himself to peruse my notebook and ate many pages of notes and rough drafts for future posts. There isn’t a undelete or backup recovery from something like that. The ideas vanished down his throat as easily as they came to me and onto the paper.
Accept and move on
I was disappointed and to be quite frank, a bit pissed at Oliver but what’s done is done and no amount of stewing over the eaten notebook will bring the words and paragraphs back. In the end I should have put my notebook away like I usually do. This isn’t the first time that this has happened so it’s on me just as much as it’s on Oliver. In fact, his little binge eating spree reminded me that I can’t control what happens to me but I can control how I respond to it.
What occurred a few days back wasn’t a loss because I learned from it.
Thanks Oliver!
Update: Almost a year later we lost our friend/family member, Oliver the Bulldog, and I miss him dearly. Miss the snorts, the smells, his genuineness. He truly lived an authentic life and I think of him often and still learn from him from time to time. Dogs can be the best teachers.