Rediscovering Yourself in San Diego

Rediscovering Yourself in San Diego 12/17/17

 "We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open."       Jawaqharial Nehru


Went on a hike this past weekend with my two dogs on the "Hemingway Trail," a trail I had not been on for a long time. The weather was great and the dogs were good. It made me think of the RSD class because we have so many fantastic places to roam and adventure in San Diego.

My beloved Roxy, an 11 year-old chocolate Lab, died on May 3, 2017. After her death, my husband Brent and I were so depressed we did not walk on our usual daily outings to one of the local parks or trails for two whole months, not wanting to see anyone we knew or their dogs who would remind us of our grief.

Roxy in 2/2017 at Liberty Station

 I was scheduled to interview for the job at SDCCD (thought I was interviewing for teaching an exercise class and had no idea about the RSD class at the time) on May 9, 2017, while I was still mourning. The morning of my interview I told Brent that I wanted to cancel my interview. I was suffering from severe allergies, still consumed with grief, and did not feel like I could put my best foot forward interviewing for a job, even though I had previously worked for the District many years ago. He reminded me how unprofessional that would be and that I needed to be strong and just do it and so I did.

About two months later, there was a post on the social media site Nextdoor about two dogs tied to a pole in our neighborhood and a query about the availability of anyone willing to foster the dogs. One dog had chewed her leash off, but stayed with the other one until they were picked up by animal control. Obviously they were bonded. By the time the rescue organization, Rovers Retreat (RR), went to the shelter, another family had already adopted one of the dogs. We were still able to foster one.

A few days later, the family that adopted one of the dogs returned her to the shelter. A supervisor at the shelter contacted RR and alerted them that the one dog was back in the shelter. RR called me and we all raced over to the shelter eager to reunite the dogs. The dogs were so happy to see each other and be together again. We recently officially adopted the dogs. RR asked us to take a family photo to post another happy ending on their website and that is the picture you see below. 

Patches on the left, Coco on the right

Both Brent and I are shy by nature and do not participate in social media activities for the most part, but I felt compelled to tell this story. Rediscovering San Diego is as much about opening our eyes to what is in front of us as to opening our eyes as to what is inside of us. Life is full of so many rich opportunities, we are capable of so much more than we may think and no matter what has happened in our lives, we have to keep moving forward and embracing new experiences. 2017 was a trying year in my life and losing Roxy was almost "the straw that broke the camel's back." Being part of the RSD class and meeting so many great people has really helped me get through this tough year.

Hope to see you on another adventure soon.