My Heart Can't Say No

Saturday could not have been a more perfect day!  Bright sunshine and warmth, my favorite!  I finally was able to get my rain barrel set up for the year.  I figure with the strange weather we've been having, our summer is probably going to be one with lots of rain or none at all. The birds were feeling industrious too.  Each year as the dogs start to shed, I collect some of their hair and put it out for the birds to use in their nests. Yesterday the 'Titmouse' was collecting some.  I like the thought that the hair from my dogs will be keeping baby birds warm.

While a couple of the dogs watched from the porch, I also got some weeding done. Readers of this blog may recall that poison ivy and I don’t mix well.  I know that it's growing in my flower beds and I 'think' I know what it looks like.  While I avoided what I 'think' it is, I know that there was no way to not come in contact with it. I used a special soap to wash off the oils afterwards, and this morning despite a few blotches, I think I've avoided getting it....This time...Afterwards we took a walk up into the field in back of us.

~Hamlet~

Today is supposed to be a quiet one. We 'might' be getting a new addition to our crew in the next couple of days.  A senior Golden, who is about 13 years old, named Sandy needs a hospice-home without stairs for the time she has left. The rescue was unable to find a place for her to go and asked us. For once, I really, really resisted because our lives will be undergoing some changes over the next few months (I'll write about them very soon).  I asked them to work and find another place for Sandy.  The family from the rescue that has her, decided that they did not want her to stay with them, and the rescue was unable to find another foster home. The rescue communicates almost totally via e-mail.  So an unusual step was taken and an actual phone call was made to me to ask again.  I'd had a feeling this might happen and I'd already given it a lot of thought and discussed it at length with Carl.  So after talking to this volunteer about it and discussing how to get her here from the state of Delaware, I agreed.  Sandy is not in the best of condition right now.  But in my heart I knew that I couldn't say 'no' to a Golden Retriever that needs a place to go, especially one that's not feeling well.  Below is a picture of Hamlet this morning on the back porch.  As he stood there looking so relaxed and was sniffing the air, the feeling came over me that bringing Sandy here is the right thing to do.