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“You can love a dog like you loved people when you were a child. Without fear. Only this happens for opposite reasons: as a child, you love without knowledge and thus the threat of death; with a dog, you love despite death's ever-presence. Because each dog (except, perhaps, your last dog) will die before you, you can love them fully and accept their coming death fully, both simultaneously. Not can: have to. The pairing of these truths forces you into the present tense; and so, in the meantime, joy.” — Rachel Kapelke-Dale
You can love a dog like you loved people when you were a child. Without fear. Only this happens for opposite reasons: as a child, you love without knowledge and thus the threat of death; with a dog, you love despite death's ever-presence. Because each dog (except, perhaps, your last dog) will die before you, you can love them fully and accept their coming death fully, both simultaneously. Not can: have to. The pairing of these truths forces you into the present tense; and so, in the meantime, joy.