It’s the start of a new month and perhaps finally the U.S. Congress and President had scraped together a deal of sorts, but I certainly wouldn’t call it “the new deal” giving any hope that what has been crafted will alleviate the current strain on the economy of too few jobs and services for the majority of those who need them…
When I’m restless I tend to want to walk, even if it is hot outside, I still walk, I just choose early morning or late at night when there is some sort of breeze. It has been a little over three weeks since our dog Grace died, so people still stop us on the street and ask “Where is the dog?”
A few days ago we introduced ourselves to Ernestine who works in the courthouse at Church Circle. She liked to say hello to Grace because she loves golden retrievers and missed taking care of her son’s dog. She felt very sad for us. She is planning to get a dog of her own, when she has more time. I guess when she retires.
My husband Peter and I saw a beautiful Golden last night and just wanted to hug her, but stayed away. The temptation was too great to start sinking in the sadness of missing our own dog. We used to get stopped by visitors to the city, wanting to pet Grace because they missed their dog at home and sometimes they wanted to pet Grace because they were mourning their dog that died— sometimes one, two, three years ago. Now we are one of those people.
Dear Nadja,
I am a Baltimore writer and big fan of your father’s paintings. A poster of one of them “Languid Cat” lives in my classroom and I use it to prompt my students’ writing reponsively. I’m working on a poem about the cat in the painting and wanted to include the cat’s name which I couldn’t remember (although I loved reading the children’s book that you wrote about the cat and am trying to track that down). I am so sorry to hear about your dog and know second hand how big-hearted golden retrievers can be. There was an article in yesterday’s NYTimes about them as therapy dogs which was remarkable, but probably unsurprising to anyone lucky enough to have lived with one. I hope you don’t find this presumptuous but your blog post sounds like it is becoming a poem of mourning about your dog.
All the best to you,
Rachel
Hi Rachel-
The cat you are inquiring about is Molly Midnight. There are still copies of the Molly Midnight books available online, including at Amazon.com. Glad to know you are utilizing the poster of Lanquid Cat as a starting point for inspiration. You’ll be interested to know that I am briefly quoted in a new book for writers and aspiring writers “The Story WIthin” by Laura Oliver published by Penquin, talking about how my father’s paintings have affected my outlook on writing.
Yes, you are right, that I have been blogging quite a bit about Grace. It was suggested to me by another dog lover and blog reader that there was an audience for sharing the dog loss process. So I guess I’ll see what other feedback I receive.
Thank you,
Nadja
Thanks for all these thoughts — I will definitely track down “The Story Within” and Molly MIdnight. Having come to know your father’s work pretty recently, I wish that America had the tradition of preserving the painter’s studio as museum the way they do in France; I loved seeing Rodin, Brancusi, and Delacroix’s studios and I feel like I know their work somehow more intimately for seeing the place where it was made.
I’ve enjoyed reading your blog and hope despite my crazy schoolyear schedule that I can keep up with it, even intermittently.
Rachel
Thank you Rachel. My father’s studio and library are being maintained by the Herman Maril Trust. One day, maybe the entire studio can be recreated in a museum setting. In the meantime, my brother David is still working to get things organized and correctly filed–a mammoth undertaking!
Have a good school year.
–Nadja
Well, I have a dog that needs a home… am fostering this amazing aussie who is really shy but has so much potential….SPCA asked that I take him until we find a home because the shelter was way to scary… let me know. He is special.
Thank you Clementine. We do want to adopt a rescue dog, but my husband and I are unsure whether an aussie is the right breed for us. We’re both away at work all day and the kids are gone, so we don’t have “work” assignments for a dog to keep busy with.. my research tells me that Aussie are working type personalities…