My sister and I are up late talking. I snuggle in my bed with my chocolate lab Hazel curled at my feet.

I share my sense of discouragement in divorce. I tell her that three years in to this no one should have to experience this exaggerated experience. I tell her I am tired.

I tell her the long-term bullying is inducing confusion. As if there wasn’t enough to begin with.

I tell her I am exhausted and ready to walk away. Of course, I was ready to walk away a long time ago but divorce takes two. The same two that made marriage impossible.

I am distracted by my Hazel. She’s big energy, a constant reminder of love in my life.

She wags her tail while looking at me.

I can’t help but smile back despite my emotional exhaustion.

Now I have to admit that my Hazel is a big hot mess. I mean this in the very best doggie way!

Hazel doesn’t have one doggie bad habit she has them all. She digs, she gets into the trash, she jumps on furniture, she breaks through the fence, she steals food, and she jumps on people. She’s hopped out of a car window and run through the grocery store not once, but twice.

Oddly, some shoppers do not find a dog running through the frozen food aisle very entertaining. Others, however, find it hilarious especially when it looks as though she’s stopped to shop herself in the dog food and bakery aisles.

Amazingly, none of this has ever bothered me. On the contrary, I believe it is a part of Hazel’s charm.

I feel lucky that she is mine.

It is an analogy for any relationship.

We are all big hot messes. Only some people see the glitter among the hot mess. They see the winning lottery ticket.

They understand that our biggest imperfections can be our greatest charm.

That a digger, a jumper, and an overall hot mess are one of the most lively additions to our lives. Because despite their faults, they don’t just love us, they adore us.

Isn’t that what love is?

Just loving someone for who they are? My golden retriever was pretty perfect. I used to call her the ‘un-dog.’ Emma didn’t have a bad habit. She was just easy and loving. I miss her and adored her.

Hazel is so much more complicated, yet I love her just as much.

Emma and Hazel are different. Dog worlds apart, yet the world needed or should I say my world needed both of them.

Perfection isn’t always bliss and imperfection isn’t always catastrophic.

It’s the acceptance of each of the people (or dogs in this case) into our lives and how they perfectly or imperfectly complete us at the…

Perfect time.

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