I wonder who my dog would be in another life or another universe. Maybe she'd have gotten bad karma for chewing up half the shoes on my shoe rack. Maybe then she'd be some sort of version of me out there. Maybe we'd have switch places and she'd be the one bearing this bittersweet feeling I carry right now.

And so, in this life, in this universe, I'll give her one of my shoes to chew on sometimes... Anything but the tissue roll.

I'll let her lick my chin or whichever part of my face she feels like every once in a while. I'll let her linger around me and give her the attention she wants sometimes, hoping it alleviates whatever sadness she could be feeling in another world or another life.

I wish to be a better mother to her than the only one I've known.