Cadre Today and Family Ties

Hey, good morning there, Cadre. How are we doing today? How are we? Well, you know, if we've shared time together before, you know, I'm going to say that I hope you're doing great, but even if you're not doing great, know that that is okay, too. Not okay as in it's like, hey, feel better if you're not feeling great? No, like. Well, obviously I'd love for you to feel better, but know that you don't have to feel better in order to be here. You don't have to feel better in order to do miraculous things that are going to change other people's lives and may even change your life.

Be subitz. Speak wonder. I know, I'm preaching to. Preaching to the crowd here, right? We know that if we're doing great, that feels good. You know, if that we're not doing great, that may not feel good, but our capacity doesn't change. Right? You still have worth even if you're in one of those these moments, as opposed to these moments. So it's Thursday, y'all. I don't know where this week's gone, but we are getting ready to enter third spring here in Minnesota. It looks like you got snow in Erie, Pennsylvania.

But wherever you are, no matter what's going on, this is Cadre today, an opportunity for you to get a little morsel of connectivity with people you may not know yet, or maybe people you do know. Hey, Jules, nice to see you. Throw that sunshine in the chat, my friend. Cadre today is that time to get that morsel of connection with other people. And also maybe a little idea to put in your satchel as you go on your day. On Thursdays, we often talk about family stuff or caregiving stuff for people who may not be a part of your biological family, but that you spend a lot of time and energy putting energy into others.

You know, I was chatting yesterday with a mentor of mine. She was one of my graduate school professors, and she currently is living most part time in Arizona, where her mom and her stepdad, 92 and 97, are both in hospice. And, you know, she was sharing how it's. It's so interesting how in these chapters of life where the things that you normally have control over, you don't, you know, she ended up having to fly to another state to check in with. With. With her child who is going through some medical stuff, and then also then having to take care of parents and da da da da da da da.

So on Thursdays, we often talk about stuff like that. Today I Want to talk about my oldest fur child, Hamilton? Hamilton is 10 and a half years old. He's a rat terrier, he's a rescue. And his favorite thing to do is to sit in the sunshine. So living in Minnesota, you don't get to do that all year round. If you're unaware on, let's see, it's Thursday. So on Tuesday night we got the biggest snowstorm of the year here where I live, we got about 10, 11 inches of snow, but third spring, which is what we're about to enter into today.

And tomorrow comes quick after winter. So all of a sudden we got the big snow again after it was kind of warm for a couple of weeks, we're back to winter. But all of a sudden here comes the warm weather in the sun again. Yesterday, Hamilton, who loves sitting right outside this window on the old broken patio, the patio probably hasn't been fixed in 20, 25 years and it's broken, it's falling apart. But he loves sitting in the broken concrete and just basking in the sun. Yesterday amidst the snow, Hamilton sat in the side of a snow bank for about a half an hour.

I'll put the picture in the community feed as soon as we're done here. Literally this little 13 pound dog sat outside in 25 degree weather in a snow bank because it was sunny. Literally this little dog, I'm like, how could you not be freezing right now? And he may have been freezing, but Hamilton goes like this and he squints in the sun and he just soaks it in. He made the most out of the day. Why? Well, he's an old dog and he knows what gives him life and energy. So even though the situation was less than perfect, the sun was shining.

Now hear this. You can hear those three words in two different ways. You can hear. Now hear this as a. Now hear this as if it was one sentence. Now H E A r this exclamation point. But today I invite you to hear it this way. Now, period, here. H E R E period this period, three sentences. Now here, this. That's what Hamilton was doing yesterday. He saw in that moment now that where he was was where he was. And it's where he chose to be. Here. And this, the sun shining down was the opportunity amidst his little frozen dog b***.

So a little song. Now I run with you As a new sun begins to rise I can see forever through these endless big blue skies now is the only time Here is the only place this is all I want to be this time I can see the view this time the sun will shine through this time this time now is the only place Here is the only now is the only time Here is the only place this is all I want to be. My senior dog yesterday taught me that. And he's like, you know what? It's snowy, and it's cold, but the sun's shining.

So I'm gonna go sit in the side of a snowbank on the broken concrete in the backyard, because I can. Because that's what I want right now. So for those of you who are caring for others, or for those of you who are a part of a family that your biology can't let you separate yourself from, my invitation is to take Hamilton's advice. To be where you are with what you have, and to honor that, but also to remind those people that you're caring for to do the same thing. Hamilton won't be here forever.

He's got a heart murmur. Found out last week he may have Cushing's disease. He's an old dog. And I think the number one thing that our fur children teach us is that life is a lot shorter than we think it is. What do they say? Our dogs are a part of our lives, but we are the whole of our dog's lives. So now is the only time. Here is the only place. This is what you got, so make the most of it. Talk to you later. Have a great day, and I will see you tomorrow.