Saturday, March 26, 2011

Separation Anxiety

I am not a dog person.  I have never had a dog.  I have never dated a dog, I mean anyone with a dog.  I don't care for their size or their smell.  They eat everything that is not nailed down.  They bark and growl and scare small children.  And call me crazy, but if someone is going to lick my inner thigh I want them to be human!

But dog people love dogs.  They rearrange their schedules for their dogs.  They take them to the park, for walks, and the occasional hamburger from the drive-thru window.  They clean up after them and pay ridiculously high vet bills.  I respect them immensely; I just don't want to grow up to be them.

Dog people, and the dogs that love them, can't wait to be reunited at the end of the day.  They happily greet each other at the door, share a meal (literally), and then curl up on the sofa to watch their favorite movies.  When they are apart, they can't wait to see each other again.

I never really understood this need because I have always had cats.  Cats are extremely independent creatures.  They just need a clean bathroom, some food twice a day, and a daily scratch between their ears.  Sure they will greet you at the door (when they are hungry), share a meal (if it is tuna fish), and curl up with you (when they feel like it), but they don't seem to suffer the separation anxiety that dogs do.  Cat people certainly love their pets, but often the cats are rather indifferent.

But now that I have a child, I completely understand!  I just dropped my daughter off for a sleep over at Grandma's house.  A place that she is dropped off 4 mornings a week.  A place that means I can shower and get dressed without little hands pulling out my earrings.  A place where someone else will wake with her at the crack of dawn tomorrow.  A place where I know she is in the best of hands.

Then why were the tears streaming down my face as I drove home?

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