The little Hall Family has expanded. Wilbur is part of us now. He’s quite different from Sadie because he is young and he’s fitting in nicely. I feel guilt about upsetting Sadie’s norm after all the poor girl has been through in her estimated 12 years. But she doesn’t seem to hate me too much. 

Expansion in any capacity is, by design, uncomfortable. The land mines of guilt, solitude, pain, or any combination there of usually await with several of their friends. Over the course of my life, I have found that sometimes expansion is preceded by a feeling of reduction. Things or people go away and there is an empty space. How we fill that void can be directly correlates to the expansion we will gain in our lives. I’ve experienced this a number of ways: divorce, living away from my family, death of loved ones, losing a job, a broken heart, a friendship that is severed. Whatever I focus on and however I occupy my mind afterwards can be attributed to the expansion of my spirit. 

Sometimes I look at Sadie and see a very old and tired dog. But sometimes I look at her and see her eyeing Wilbur, then her ears perk up and go into mischievous mode, and she’ll start playing with him. Even if it’s just for a few seconds, my heart expands when her eyes light up. 

So yes, the Hall Family is larger by ten pounds, but happier by tenfold. 

#AdventuresOfWilburSadieAndApryl