It all adds up...

Whenever I think about past decisions that turned out to be poor choices, or the events of my past that have scarred me in some way, my tendency is to wish I could change the course of events.  I think to myself that I would have done things differently, made different choices, followed a different path, and I would somehow be better off today.  It's often difficult for me to view those experiences except in a negative light.

The thing is, everyone has those experiences that may have been the result of trauma, poor choices, or just plain unlucky coincidence.  Every individual is the sum of all of their experiences, good and bad.  I seem to have no trouble embracing the past of other people, and I can be boundlessly empathetic toward others.  When it comes to my own past, though, now that's when I tend to be judgmental. 

What I am trying to learn to apply to my own life now is to be as forgiving to myself as I tend to be toward others.  Because it's not just me that I hurt when I am hard on myself.  I am also not giving other people enough credit when I assume they don't accept me as the sum of my experiences the way I accept them.  I like who I am today, even though I am far from perfect. And ya know what? Those imperfections in my friends are what endear them to me the most. I have to hope it's a mutual arrangement. :)

Nicknames

I have never been a person that uses nicknames for people.  I can't think of one person that I use a nickname for, young or old, or ever have. Okay, except for my father-in-law, who goes by Bob even though his name is Charles. No one can explain that one to me.

The thing is, every pet I have had over the last 13 years has wound up with numerous nicknames, some cutesy, mostly unexplainable as to origin.  And the thing is, they typically actually know and respond to all their nicknames. 

 Our dog Vegas, that we had for 12 years, was the first to have a series of nicknames.  She somehow became Pooh Bear, Pooh, Booh, Poobaloo, and Veggie, among others I can't recall now.  We have a cat, Cirrus, who has the fewest names...mostly C, and P (complicated explanation for that one).  Fee, our other cat, has and responds to Bee, Busy Bee, Feasel B, Feasie Bee, Fizz...you get the idea.  Our new dog, Grace, has started to acquire nicknames quickly...G, Gracie, Gracie Mae, and my favorite, Grace-a-saurus. 

I have thinking about this lately and trying to decide how unusual we are.  We talk to the pets a lot, not like crazy people that think they will respond or that they even really understand us.  I think we do it (maybe me more than the husband, I'll admit) because they respond to us based on our tone, and they learn what different tones mean to them by us talking to them a lot.  Maybe that's crazy talk, or maybe that's dog whisperer talk.  Either way, I'm certain I will not stop doing it anytime soon, so think what you want about it.