2006-08-27 :: 4:16 p.m.
Moms and Dogs

From Caroline Knapp's excellent book ''Pack Of Two'' about humans and dogs:

''The dog, moreover, loves you in a particular way, w/a kind of focus and constancy that's rare, if not paralleled, even among the most devoted family members.

Anita describes this when she talks about the difference between loving the dog and loving her children, now ages nineteen, twenty, and twenty-three. ''The largest difference,'' she says, ''is the way they feel about me. I know that my kids love me, and we have always had a very close and open relationship, but I also know that I love them more than I love me. I don't say that to be whining or anything-I think they love me as much as children can love a parent-but it's just a fact of life that mothers love their children more than they are loved in return. I don't expect to get that love back in full measure; I expect them to pass it on to their own families. So I know that my relationship w/my kids is somewhat lopsided, and that is the nature of that relationship that they will leave home and form closer bonds w/others as they develop their own lives. But w/Sparky, this is the home that she has come to for the rest of her life. And if our relationship is lopsided, it is lopsided in the other direction. Her whole life is lived for the purpose of spending time w/her family. When I leave, she just lives for the moment when I will return. I find it so comforting to have someone love me so much.''
Do you think your mom loved you more than herself?

Do you think she thought that was the way it should be?

If you are a parent, do you feel this way?

What about single or childless adult children? Does that mean they are not passing the love on?

And isn't it great dogs can't talk and Sparky can never tell this lady, ''Eh. I'm just not that in to you.''?