Marla says cruel things that she doesn’t mean. That’s how she deals with her painful life. Most of us do not understand that we might see each other only for a brief few times in a single lifetime and yet be eternal friends. Marla is drawn to your soul, Alexander. Your people have the most dazzling and vivid souls. Since Marla has always been so very close to that other world, where only soul exists, she is able to see and love your soul.
Barnaby was what I call "heart smart." While other dogs accompanied me in our intellectual journeys and listened while ideas came in, Barnaby just walked and walked with me, looking at the river or the woods and feeling deep feelings. Rarely have I had a walking companion who could just be silent, not having to make a talking point or a barking commentary. With Barnaby, one barked in silence in which much of a more contemplative nature was communicated -- peace, simplicity, the glory of the natural world, the presence of God.