In September 2011 (re)discovered the many benefits one derives from having a dog as a companion. That's when we adopted Belle, a lovely 3 1/2-year-old greyhound & former racer we were fortunate enough to adopt from a greyhound rescue operation located in our city. Initially, Belle was to be my companion because Mr. F2P was to start working away from home for weeks on end, leaving me alone in a very empty house. That said, we quickly realized that she would be much more to us than a security blanket for me while he was away. She has become a full-fledged member of the F2P family and we wouldn't have it any other way.

Belle is a great companion in many respects, but her actions and behaviours also serve as daily reminders of what's important in life. And, regardless of how advanced a species we think we are, we often either forget what matters most or take it for granted when we lead our busy, often-preoccupied, lives.