ELBEE OMG she stole the title of this post from a UCLA email about the Valentines Day event.
Okay, yes I did but it was better than anything I could come up with. As for the event, you know how sometimes you throw a party and everything just seems to come together? That’s what Wednesday was like. Several dogs from the People Animal Connection, all decked out for the holiday, were there to celebrate. Gus looked a little embarrassed when I put heart tinsel and a red hat on him but that was nothing compared to Gracie and Baylee in their cute dresses
Instead of traveling around the hospital in a “pack” as we usually do for Christmas caroling, we split up into small groups delivering cards and gifts to patients and staff all over the hospital. I think because we went into so many areas simultaneously, the atmosphere became very festive. There were countless smiles. There was laughter. There were wagging tails.
Gus was paired up with his buddy Tommy. By the way, kudos to Tommy for remaining humble even though a fellow Bichon had won Westminster the day before. From the executive offices, to the Emergency Department to Maddie’s room, where anxious family members wait for news about their loved ones in surgery, the dynamic duo worked their magic. The phrase that Tommy’s person Donna and I heard over and over again was, “That is just so much cuteness.”
ELBEE Pardon the interruption, but I think I’m going to be sick. And no, I’m not jealous.
Later in the morning, teams gathered outside the hospital for a pet visit station. It was there that the party kicked into high gear. We gave out cards, candy and gifts but the dogs were the best valentines. A young girl in a wheel chair giggled as we brought the dogs to her. Toddlers holding onto parents’ hands stopped in wide-eyed wonder. Patients, families and staff members came outside to say hello. I can’t even count how many times I heard someone say, “This made my day.”
I was in a very upbeat mood when I headed to the car with Gus. Then I turned on the radio and heard about the mass shooting in Florida. It was a shooting so awful that there is no way to minimize the horror. What brought it home even more was that two of my cousins graduated from Marjory S. Douglas High School years ago. How sad that this is the second time in one of my posts that I’ve felt the need to mention a mass shooting out of respect for the people who were directly impacted.
Our dogs spent the morning at UCLA cheering everyone up, bringing them moments of joy. Now there are dogs in Florida who are working selflessly to help with the healing process in the aftermath of another unspeakable tragedy.
