Sunday, January 30, 2011

Happy Birthday to... Rocky!!!

Today is my dog's birthday.  Yep, I know when my dog's birthday is.  In case you didn't already know, I love my dog, A LOT.  I got Rocky for my birthday four years ago, when he was just a few months old.  He has changed my life in a lot of ways.  And, I credit him with helping my mental health.  

When I first got Rocky I had been diagnosed with bipolar just a few months before, and had quit drinking just before that.  I was still struggling with a lot of things and my medication was still being adjusted.  Some days I didn't want to get out of bed at all.  There were days when life just seemed too hard and I wanted to let the bipolar wash over me, more than I wanted the medication to work.  But, with Rocky, I had no choice but to get up and get moving.  He needed to be fed, walked, played with.  So, even on those bad days I would get up.  It would have been so much easier to not get Rocky and not get my act together.  But, I did it.

Today, I am in a much different place than I was when Rocky came in to my life.  I still have bad days, where all I want to do is crawl under the covers and hide, but I look at the dog and the cuddly loving looks he gives me and I get myself up and take care of him, and in turn take care of myself.  I have my mental health under control and my personal life is in a much better place.  I know the dog didn't do these things for me, but with him it made it all so much more possible and feasible.  

I often say Rocky saved my life.  But, in fact what he did was show me how to save my own life. Through caring for my dog I have learned to better care for myself.  I have learned to appreciate my own life more.  Rocky gives me unconditional love, everyday.  When he wakes up in the morning he's just so happy to be alive, and it makes me try harder to take on the day in a positive way.  Every time I come home he's is just so happy to see me, wagging his little tail and wiggling around and jumping up to get to me.  This kind of love and happiness makes me a better person.  I love having this goofy little creature in my life and could not imagine my life without him.

Happy Birthday to my dog, Rocky!!!

As a side note, I totally let Rocky sleep on the bed, and occasionally under the covers.  I know that there are people who think this is weird or gross or whatever.  My thought is, if I wouldn't sleep on the floor why would I make him sleep on the floor?  That's just madness!  I'm not making him sleep on the floor.

Check out my picture of the day today to see how Rocky celebrated his big day (a little celebration and a nice long walk): http://2011-inpictures.blogspot.com/