A Great Dog's Life Remembered

 

              This week I made it to the county seat of a neighboring rural county a distance away.  I go there sometimes to get horse and animal supplies, and we hadn't been there in a while.  Grandson and I were happy to go with all the trees in their full glory in reds, yellow, oranges and a little green.

                Often when we go to this town we encounter a man who is a veteran, who walks with an exceptionally well trained dog who is large part rottweiler.  He once told me that the dog is an emotional support dog.   "Aren't they all? " I said,  not really getting, at that moment, what he was trying to tell me, about himself.   Over the years we have really enjoyed encountering them. My grandson, now eight, has grown up going to this town, eating in the little "mom and pop" restaurant, shopping in the locally owned stores, and encountering the dog and his man. 

                  I cannot effectively relate how lovely this dog always was to me. The man affectionately called him "Dog Meat", and he certainly was the most muscular or meaty dog I think I have ever known.   The dog was a true muscular giant with a heart of gold.  Most dogs like me, even when I did the census, and this one was no exception. He was always glad to see me, and he clearly recognized me each time I saw him.  His owner had a theory that his dog, who had been a puppy on a farm and whose early best friends had been horses, smelled horses and my other multiple dogs on me, and knew that I was a friend to both horses and dogs. The dog was consistently obedient, loving and sweet although occasionally, his enthusiastically wagging tail would smart your legs as he wagged.

                  I remember taking one of my larger dogs to an immunization event in this town during the COVID lockdowns, and there was "Dog Meat" and his owner.  "Dog Meat" was happy to see me, but the dog I had brought, part Borzoi and German Shepherd, was a new acquisition to me, and he wasn't the least bit happy to see that a dog as muscular as "Dog Meat" not only knew me, but took an interest in me. My poor shepherd mix quickly conveyed that he was ready to fight to the death if necessary. I told "Dog Meat" I would see him next time, and that this new dog didn't know him.  He seemed to understand. But of course, "Dog Meat" has always been a highly intuitive dog.

                   This week when my grandson and I went to the town, we saw the veteran walking another dog.  The new dog is a large young shepherd, and of course, doesn't know us. I did know that the man had been planning to get a second dog, and to begin training him. I asked about "Dog Meat" and how he was doing. The man had tears in his eyes as he related that "Dog Meat" had died three weeks before. The large dog had been ten years old, and although he was healthy until about half of his last day, the man knew that his friend's passing would soon be inevitable, simply due to age . "Dog Meat" seemed relieved at the man's having brought the shepherd puppy home, knowing that his owner was deeply dependent upon him, and would need a new dog on which to depend..

                  "Dog Meat", my family and I were deeply dependent upon you too. Seeing you every time I went to the town, and having you happy to see me was such an affirmation of so many things. It affirmed that dogs are as bright as I know them to be, and that they recognize the people who truly adore the species. I know that many people from town will miss you, even the police officer who insisted that you still be on a leash, even though you could walk with your owner totally obediently without one.  Even during difficult times, "Dog Meat" could lift my own spirits.  We love you and thank you for a life so well lived. You will be sorely missed, and will be remembered always.

                 As we went to leave, the dog's owner said to me. "I will never forget him, and I am not sure I will ever get over him".  "I understand", I replied.  "You will go on because he wants you to, but you will always remember and you will always miss him."  The man deserved not to have the truth sugar coated.  I miss so many wonderful dogs who are gone from my life now, even when they lived to and beyond their normal life expectancy.  

                 Godspeed, "Dog Meat".

As the Times Turn

                 

 

 

   Like most children, I spent a lot of time trying to understand my parents.  I grew up in the 1970s, and they seemed to worry a good deal.  My father worried about potential job losses and recessions and gas prices. He worried about our safety and about people who seems inappropriately interested in his children.  My mother worried about our educations and whether we were learning as much as we needed to. She never seemed happy, and at times, I think she was depressed.  To me, this seemed silly.  We lived in a rural community which became more suburban as I grew. The crime rate was low. Families bought new cars regularly. Most of us had a pretty decent annual vacation.  Every parent I knew was happily employed, and if something went wrong, they found a new job within two weeks to a month.  There were opportunities for everyone who wanted them, it seemed to me, and those who wished to attend colleges had their pick.

                    What I didn't understand at the time, was that my father had signed up for the Merchant Marine at 16, and had seen WWII from the standpoint of the ship delivering the supplies.  My mother had been one of the children separated from her family and sent to live in the country when London was unmercifully bombed. She lost friends, family and loved ones. She literally did not see any family for a couple of years, and her life had not been easy. The war had taken much from them and had caused them to find one another later than they may have otherwise, and it had therefore caused them to have their children later than they otherwise may have had them.

                   I had not understood as a child and as a teen was that my parents had worked very hard to find the place and to craft the circumstances in which I had the luxury of living as I did and of judging them for being too concerned, and for not enjoying life as I thought they should.

                   God has both a sense of humor and a desire to answer some of the questions we once asked in our youth.  As my own young adult children, my little grands, and my family navigate gas prices of $4.60 a gallon, and home prices higher than my kids had ever imagined, in an era where Russia invades Ukraine, and a demented fool occupies our White House, I understand my parents better. They knew turmoil and loss and even when it seemed over, they had the knowledge that difficult times could and likely would return again someday.  My family stands now on the precipice of these really difficult times again.

                     So as you navigate these difficult times with so much skin in the game, remember that your grandparents, your parents, your children and your grandchildren have been trained by the times in which they lived in order to navigate them. Try to look on them with love rather than thinking them out of sync or perhaps behind the times.  In a sense, we are experts at living in the times in which we now find ourselves.

 

 

 

The Granite Rock is Now Available in Varietal Electronic Forms

 

 

 

I am pleased to announce that "The Granite Rock" is available as an e-book at the following links:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-granite-rock

https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1490386309

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-granite-rock-jane-alexandra-krehbiel/1134913483?ean=2940163194391

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B082DF7CV3

https://booklocker.com/books/10664.html

 

 

 

 

 

"The Granite Rock", My Third Novel, Is Released

      "The Granite Rock", my sixth book and third novel has been released for sale.

You can get softcover copies at:

https://booklocker.com/books/10664.html


Very shortly, this book will be available on Amazon and worldwide at quality booksellers. 


 

Westward: The Novel Available in Varietal Electronic Forms

                Although the soft cover version of Westward: The Novel was available in late August, varietal electronic versions took a bit more time.   I am pleased to announce that they are now ready and can be located at:

  


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07J4VK99P

It is also up at the other stores:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/westward-jane-alexandra-krehbiel/1129481765

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/westward-the-novel/id1438371156

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/westward-the-novel



The paperback copy remains available at:

 https://www.amazon.com/Westward-Novel-Jane-Alexandra-Krehbiel/dp/1591136431




and at:


https://booklocker.com/books/9981.html

"Westward: The Novel" is Released !

"Westward: The Novel is a 6x9 inch paperbound book with 322 pages. It is also available electronically.

                  "Westward: The Novel" is my fifth book, and second novel.   This time, it's not about disaster preparedness, the true story of a family dealing with the death of a child, a novel about an intelligence analyst and his family making a go of life on a large acreage during an economic collapse, or the true story of the life of an American world explorer.  This time, it's a novel that traces the life of a young woman with small children who must return to work after the death of her husband. She not only finds work and builds a new career for herself while parenting her children, but she finds the second great love of her life.  This is a story of overcoming obstacles and then of taking chances. It also follows her through the process of blending a new husband who has never been married or had children to a family with four of them.  This book was designed to be read by either men or women.  It is also meant to be a story of hope and of inspiration as all of the primary characters do move forward in life.

             Today, it is available at this website   https://assets.booklocker.com/pdfs/9981s.pdf 

It should shortly be available on Amazon.    In the weeks that follow, it will ultimately be available worldwide and will be available at any bookstore and also eventually at libraries.   I will update as I learn of its availability.

            It's ISBN # is:   978-1-59113-643-9


            If you do purchase this book, particularly on Amazon, if you could write even a brief review that helps to get more people interested in the book and in reading in general.  Thank you !


           This is the first time that "practical Jane" has written what is, in part, a love story so it covers new ground in that respect.  I hope you enjoy it.

"Westward: The Novel" is Coming Very Soon

     Within about the next week or so, my newest "baby", a 6x9 inch, 322 page work, named "Westward:The Novel" will be available for sale.

      This book is the story of a young woman with four children who is suddenly widowed.  Through her shock and confusion, compounded by not having any additional family, she sets out to work in order to support her family.  This is the story of how she finds a way to work, and to care for her children.  It is also the story of her discovery of the "second great love of her life" and how they both manage their differences and that find a way to build a family together.

         I will update this blog as soon as the book is released.