There are some days full of such disturbing or sad news that an attempt to post about something happy seems like folly, or at the very least, insensitive. News stories from the Middle East, and closer to home, from St. Louis–and then to hear that someone else lost an argument with the lying bastard that is depression and ended his life…
I remind myself that yes, bad things, terrible things happen every day–and so do wondrous things. There’s a line from the musical Rent that always rang true for me: “The opposite of war isn’t peace. It’s creation!”
So today, what made me happy is this. Murder By The Book put together an event for mystery writer Spencer Quinn’s new book Paw and Order, making the rescue I volunteer with the beneficiary of a percentage of the night’s sales. Quinn’s series features PI Bernie Little and his partner, Chet, who happens to be a dog. It’s the dog angle that makes the matchup between Spencer Quinn and the rescue group a good one. And as I talked with some of our volunteers and met new book fans and a new-to-me author, I was reminded that these are ways we affirm ourselves: gathering, sharing, talking, creating, laughing with one another. Turning to community. We’re all in this together, and I’m glad I share the planet with so many people who create–a true act of hope–and who do for and give to others, including our voiceless friends: homeless, neglected, and abused dogs and cats.
