Sunday, November 12, 2006

Drive Through

Since returning from my trip, I feel like I've had little of interest to share with you.  I have been in vacation recovery...getting back in some sort of routine and making some plans for the next few months.  I finished both pairs of mosaic mitts and enough of the Malabrigo sweater to discover that yet AGAIN, I am off gauge and will need to pull it out and start over.  Sometimes I get so frustrated, I actually wonder if I should just knit shapeless things, or sweaters only for donations, so I don't have to worry who it fits.  In fact, because of my frustration over this, I picked up some handspun yarn and have knit two very plain triangle shawls while I cooled off.  I used the Prairie Shawl pattern from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls book.  I highly recommend if you want to just knit and not have to think so much.  These shawls will be sent to Dulaan Project for next year's distribution in Mongolia.



I have one last bit of my trip to share with you.   I have debated sharing this with you, but it is so heavy on my mind, I am hoping that doing so will help me get over it.  While driving across the desert of California, we pulled off in Barstow for gasoline and a coffee at the Starbucks nearest the freeway.  Cimg0606 As we got out of our truck, this VERY personable fellow came up to say hello.  In fact, not only did he say hello, he nudged my hand hardCimg0605.  I petted him and asked him who he belonged to.  He had no collar.



I asked the staff of Starbucks if they knew who he belonged to, and they told me he had been living there for some time.  Apparently several people had tried to load him into their cars to take him home, but he resisted.  Instead, they bought him fast food hamburgers to help him get by.  The staff at the fast food places in this little mall named him Drive Through.



As we walked back outside, another truck drove in.  He immediately approached, but the man who got out of it just ignored him.  Then he settled into this pose, watching the driveway.  I realized then that whoever had dumped him probably had driven a pickup truck, and he was still there, waiting for that same person to come back to get him.  With a heart of gold, this wonderful dog loved that person enough to believe it was all a mistake. 



I know there are sad animal stories anywhere you live...they certainly abound here in northern New Mexico.  This holiday season, Taos Sunflower is sponsoring a tree at the 2006 Annual Festival of Trees and Wreaths here in town.  100% of the money our tree is auctioned for will be donated to New Mexico Canine Safeguard and Rescue, a no-kill shelter here in town.  I hope that wherever he is now, Drive Through is enjoying some love and comfort...and I hope whoever dumped him isn't. ---Martie



2 comments:

Bernadette Garner said...

My hope is that Drive Through is a sort of spokes or barks person for homeless doggies. That he touches people lives as he touched yours on a daily basis and makes them think about the lives of neglected animals. Maybe that is he duty or he feels it is. I am so glad that the tree to be auctioned will help our four legged friends. If Drive Through influenced this, then he did his job for that day!!

KayInNewMexico said...

I think it's good to be reminded that we don't live in a perfect world, and that maybe we can help the ugly places out a little bit. So first, a woke my kitties up and hugged them (which they did not necessarily appreciate at the moment) because Queen Victoria is a shelter kitty and Abercrombie and Fitch are two of her kittens. Next, I wrote a nice check to the Albuquerque Humane Association. And after that I spoke a little bit to Saint Francis about Drive Through.