I’ve been feeling down for the past few weeks. It’s hard to explain how you can feel both happy and sad at the same time, but that’s the battle I deal with sometimes.
I think people who deal with this type of feeling expect the world to stop and listen to us or at least acknowledge us, but I get the feeling that most people aren’t actually listening; they hear, but they don’t truly listen. The world keeps moving and most people will see another struggling but will never even ask them how they are truly feeling. Besides, even if people did ask, I’m not sure people like myself would answer honestly. “I’m fine,” has basically become one of my catch phrases.
I believe that most people don’t like to hear about other people’s problems. It makes people uncomfortable. I’ve found that people don’t know what to say or how to react when you tell them that you haven’t been feeling well inside. People like to think you should “just cheer up,” but that doesn’t work for a lot of us, and this is exactly why my dog is my best friend. Caesar and Jeter don’t expect me to be happy 100 percent of the time, they know when something is wrong and know how to react, they would never tell me to just cheer up, and they proud of me for just existing.
With a dog, you get someone who loves you 100 percent of the time no matter what you are dealing with. There are only two people I can think of that are so excited they want to explode when I get home, and they both have four legs. You don’t get that with people.
How magical is it that you can have a bond so strong with someone when you don’t even speak the same language; 100 percent of your interactions are through actions. How you feel about each other is always actually shown, and I think that’s where humans fall short. A lot of us say things or make promises but don’t follow through with our actions. With a dog, that can’t happen.
There are countless studies that show that dogs can relieve stress and at the same time there are countless studies that show that being in nature is also emotionally healing. This is why I take my dog on hikes all the time. I never feel closer with Caesar than I do when we are in the woods together. Sometimes he looks back at me and makes sure I am still there, and if that ain’t love, I don’t know what is.
I read a study not long ago that said that people are often more forgiving and more patient with their dog than they are with their significant other. I believe that. Dogs are more patient with us than most people, so it only makes sense that we show them the same treatment back. It’s hard to be upset with something that only shows affection all the time and is happier than anyone that you exist.
We humans are basically plants: we need lots of water, sunshine from outside, and lots of delicate care (especially from ourselves). For me, self-care comes in the form of walking in nature with my dog and distancing myself from people. Excuse me while I create some distance for a bit and spend some much needed time with my best friend – my dog.