My Passion
(P1A)
Jerome Bump
Victorian Literature
Fall 2006
Anh Nguyen
My Passion
It
was the fall of 1992 when I was first discovered my passion. I was seven years
old and did not yet grasp what passion was, but I could feel the emotions
inside of me. I knew the passion existed. Through the many passions that I
accumulated over my lifetime, this one remained with me during all these years
with my devotion for it intensifying everyday. After my sisters and I received
our first puppy, which we called Lucky, we immediately adored him, especially
me. He had a long, slender body with short, golden brown fur and dark brown
eyes. As much as I adored him, I did not spend as much time with him, because
like a child he made a mess wherever he went, and I did not [1]
want to clean up his mess. Months after receiving Lucky, winter approached and
the freezing temperature appeared at our front steps. As a seven-year-old, you
would think I would know not to leave a baby puppy outside in the cold weather.
Well, I did know. My older sister was actually responsible for Lucky’s death.
On a cold winter night, she accidentally left my dog outside in the cold for
the entire night while the rest of the family was asleep. Being only a few
months old, Lucky could not handle the effects of the cold weather, thus he
died shortly thereafter of what my sister referred to as “natural causes.” At
that time, I was too young to understand what this animal could do for me, the
happiness and cheerfulness it could bring in my life. Therefore, I was not too
sad or distraught about Lucky’s death, but this incident was my first exposure
to animals nonetheless. This experience revealed to me a whole new world, an
animal world. A world where other non-human beings depended on us for survival
and their vulnerability exposed to people’s every move.
Since
Lucky’s death, my family has brought in numerous dogs; however their residence
in our home never lasted long. Not that they all died, but some were given away
due to some conflicts such as vicious tempers. Then, the year when my passion
for dogs started to emerge was the year we got Happy, our miniature schnauzer
and Polo, our miniature poodle. Instantly, I fell in love with them. I wasn’t
sure if it was because I was now old enough to understand the value of spending
time with them, or maybe it was just because they gave me more affection than
my other previous dogs. Either way, these
[2]
two dogs have been in my life for about 5 years, pretty much since they were
born. When I see these two animals, I feel right at home. They have given me
some [3]
of the greatest and funniest moments in my life and feelings of joy and
laughter that I rarely receive when being around people. Because of this, it is
no surprise that I feel my sense of place when I am with them. When I spend
time with my dogs, I find a “familiar landscape as refuge from the unknown,
perhaps from the terrifying prospect of being set adrift in what would
otherwise be dimensionless, time-less, and chaotic world.” [4]
Without my dogs I would not feel as comfortable in my home, because I would
feel something is always missing. Happiness and a positive aura would be
missing, making my sense of place gradually fade away.
Furthermore,
since I am considered more introverted I tend to keep feelings to myself
instead of sharing them with others. I guess that’s where my dogs come in. When
I see them, I feel completely at ease to reveal any problems I may have in my
life. Knowing they do not understand me nor can respond to me, I actually
really like it. When I have issues that I have bottled up inside me, I enjoy
having someone just listening. Even if they do not understand me, at least they
can sit there and look at me. And that’s usually enough for me. My dogs have
supported me in every form, physically and emotionally. When no one really
understood me or when my parents argued with me, my dogs were always the first
ones to offer [5]me
affection. Being an introvert I “like independent study,” as well as
“one-on-one” discussions.[6] This
statement does not only apply to writing and learning skills, but personal
skills as well. Since I like to study independently, I prefer to do almost
everything that involves my personal thoughts independently as well. Not to say
that people are not helpful, I just prefer solving problems on my own with the
attentive ears of another, in this case, my dogs.
I
am not exactly sure what about dogs that intrigues me, but I think it’s a
combination of canine characteristics that I do not seem to find in humans as
much. Loyalty is a word many have heard, and yet, it is an extremely rare
quality to be found. Dogs exemplify what it means to be loyal, to their[7]
keepers and to each other. Granted, there are at times some untamed, vicious
dogs in this world, but even our human world consists of both good and bad. At
least for me, I noticed many times that even after my two dogs were punished
for doing something bad, they still came crawling back to me afterwards. With
their tails tucked between their legs and an occasional glimpse at me from time
to time, I know they feel remorse for their actions. Of course they are animals
and they do make mistakes more than once, but who or what doesn’t?
As
mentioned before, even humans can act violently towards one another and such
treatment is considered inhumane and heartless. What makes the mistreatment of
animals and the abuse of people any different? Although canines may not be as
intelligent and complex as humans, I believe that they are completely capable
of feeling joy and pain just like people do. I have to admit that I did not
always believe animals had emotions and sentiment; that all changed a year ago
when I had another poodle. I try not to talk about her very much because it
brings tears to my eyes just thinking about the 
situation.
Her name was Prada. She was fun-loving and hyper, but was very jealous of other
female dogs, specially my miniature schnauzer Happy. I had Prada for about 8
months before she [8]started
acting extremely violent towards Happy. Over time Prada’s jealously drove her
to commit many dangerous and scary acts. She attacked Happy every chance she
got, tearing at her skin and biting her ears until they bled. Weeks passed by
and my family could no longer stand to see such violence between our dogs take
place, so my parents had only one thing to do, they gave Prada away. It was a
difficult decision because we did not know which dog we should give away,
especially 
since
we loved both of them equally. But since Happy was older and less likely to
adapt to new owners, we decided to keep her instead. The fact that she was
being given away was not the sad part for me, it was actually seeing her leave.
The night a man came over to take her was probably one of the saddest moments
in my life so far. It was as if she knew[9] she was being given away. As the man stood at
the door with a new cage for her, she
slowly walked into his cage,
laid down and looked away from me like she did not know me at all. Tears
spontaneously crept up on me and I left the room because I could not bear to
see her leave. At that moment I realized animals do have feelings of sadness
and loneliness just like humans. And because of that, they too should be
treated with love and respect. They, like humans, deserve the same attention
and care just like people do.
Furthermore,
I find it interesting how exotic animals are seen as prized treasures in our
country. Although exotic creatures like Komodo Dragons are rare and may be on
the verge of extinction, what about these unique and sometimes, deadly
creatures that is so different from dogs that we spend money and time to
preserve these species instead of canines. Unlike exotic animals, it [10]
seems as if people do not understand the value of dogs just because there is an
abundance of them in this world. But canines may become part of that extinction
group one day as well if they are not protected and cared for appropriately. It
is apparent that different animals have different attitudes, a distinction
found clearly between a wild animal and a tamed one, but dogs seem to portray a
unique personality that is unlike any other creature. According to Mary Bly,
“Dogs come when they’re called; cats take a message and get back to you later.”
[11]
This is a quote that I found to be quite humorous and in a way, true. Unlike
many animals in nature, dogs are one of the fewest creatures capable of being
trained and obedient. Because of this natural characteristic, I think it makes
them one of the world’s most fascinating and precious animals in this world,
even if they are not considered as exotic creatures.
When it comes to my different passions, I do not get as zealous about other subjects as I do for my passion for dogs. It was a coincidence that a few weeks ago my boyfriend asked me “what ‘work’ do I like doing so much I would do it for free.” [12]After going through several fantasies about traveling the world and eating all day, I thought of something more practical, more useful. My exact words were, “I would create a huge dog shelter where all dogs could eat for free…oh, and especially the skinny, homeless ones.” As my boyfriend stood there giggling and making fun of me, an idea sparked. And I asked myself, “Why Don’t I?” That image still brings a smile to my face now and excites me when I think about it more. Coming home from a hard day at work or school I can always count on my dogs to give me tons of affection and excitement, emotions that I rarely feel these days with all the worries of making money to pay bills and passing school tests. But “while all melts under our feet, we may well grasp at any exquisite passion, or any contribution to knowledge that seems by a lifted horizon to set the spirit free for a moment.” [13]My passion for canines allows my mind to reach a state of relaxation and spiritual freedom, a state of mind where I worry about nothing and absorb myself in this serene mentality. But this disposition lasts only temporally and the peaceful feelings are then corrupted by the realization of the real animal world.
I
watch the animal channel almost religiously and almost every single time I see
an episode concerning animal cruelty. As I watch animals, mainly dogs, be
rescued from ditches, abandoned homes, and locked-up cages with no food or
water, it really hits my emotional spot. Being classified as an introvert, I
already know I do not share feelings nor do I really have much sentiment for
many things, but when it comes to the suffering of dogs it really gets to me. I
think I get so sentimental as a result of knowing that dogs have no ability to
stop what people do to them, and they cannot help the fact that they are left
alone to slowly die in some cases. I really do not understand what drives
people to mistreat animals in the first place, especially when a dog offers
companionship and comfort for a person. Their loving actions intensify my passion for
canines and this [14]passion
drives me to make a difference in the animal world. This devotion for animals,
canines especially, inspires me to do something to prevent animal cruelty. I
believe that goal is part of my journey and part of my purpose in life. And as
part of my life purpose, I feel as if it is my duty to help these innocent
creatures, to be the voice of all the animals that have no ability to speak for
themselves. In order to help, I realize I first need to now what already is
being done about this problem. I want to talk to animal organizations such as
the Humane Society, the ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty
to Animals) and other groups promoting animal rights to figure out 
what
can be done. An organization that really
opened my eyes was the Animal Rescue Organization in
“Communication is at the heart of the enterprise,” [16]and that is where I want to begin my journey to help prevent animal cruelty - with communication. I want to spread the word and help shelters and other animal lovers join together to stop cruelty for all living beings, beyond humans. With my passion, a plan or idea to prevent any sort of animal cruelty can start to emerge. My dogs have shown me a different and new perspective of life, a more vulnerable and sometimes threatened one. Not only have I become more opened-minded and aware of my purpose in life, but now I know my true passion as well. It is a passion that has brightened up my life in so many ways, brought peace into my home, serenity in my heart, and may one day bring unity between humans and animals.
Quotes Count: 85 words
Word Count: 2,323-85 = 2,238
New Words: 430 words
Final Word Count:
2,238