That day is today. March 3, 2019.

I’ve waited 2 years, 8 months and 2 days.

Day after day. Week after week. I’ve waited. And waited.

Waiting for Brutus to shift into a place of love. Into a place of wanting and choosing to hang with his hairy pack members. We humans are a given. Even though he has bitten both of us, he loves us.

But the dogs. Well, he simply tolerated them. Until today.

Brutus is the dog with “those eyes”. The haunting eyes and sorrowful soul that tells you he has endured some pretty dark stuff.

He was sent to me to test my patience, push every button on me and draw new ones. This dog has taken me to my emotional brink and left me angry and dangling. If he could flip me off, he would. Then he walks away leaving me to sort out my feelings. Always loving me. Always testing me.

He has forced me to dig deep and find an even better version of myself than already existed. Sometimes the dog has a hand in rehabilitating the human, too. ❤️

Has it been a picnic? Absolutely not. What I do it again? Absolutely!

True rehabilitation takes time and love and patience for both humans and animals. A few weeks living here with us for training doesn’t magically fix or rehabilitate your dog fully. It just lays the groundwork for you to continue the work. Every.Single.Day.

Today’s blessing came from our old boy Jojo. Deaf, goofy, cluelessly walking and pooping. He loves everyone and everything. My welcome wagon dog. Pure joy inside and out.

Two years, eight months and two days later, Jojo waived our boy Brutus into home plate!