This was such a beautiful read Kristen!! 🦋🦋🦋I’m swirling with butterflies but I ESPECIALLY felt this line: “Unbridled joy seems hard to come by these days. It’s like we don’t want to lean in too hard, because we might look dumb or silly or be judged for something that we truly enjoy, so we stifle our excitement. We tamp it down to protect ourselves.”
I am also well into my 30s and it took me… until my 30s…! To truly embrace expressing that excitement and joy without impressment, tho of course I am still trying to get better at it. I am also so inspired whenever I interact with anyone who just expresses love and joy out in the open and without any concern. Yes, it’s a sad reality: some people are uncomfortable around that kind of joy. But that’s their own issue!!! Ugh anyway: another great one Kristen!!!
I LOVE OLD LADIES ugh that’s my demographic that kind of lady that just gets it “animals are love” are you kidding profound I love her and will one day be her 😂🥹 this post made me cry I feel the same way that joy can be so hard to come by at times but it’s in the little moments we can be in touch with it again! big fan of yours Kristen!
Reading this make me smile so big. That lady is right. Animals are love. What a beautiful interaction and how you wrote it, I could see everything in my mind happening like a movie. And yes, how much we do see when we put our phones down and are present. Hopefully we all can do this more often. Btw-Betty is adorable ❤️
Why am I tearing up while reading this! I absolutely love these kinds of kind and genuine interactions with strangers that feel like they really remind you about why we live and are social creatures who should exclaim with joy and engagement with others. Love that you shared this as well.
Omg Kristen!!! This was beautiful!! Now you have me on the verge of tears. Our animals really are love. My poodle mix is now going on 3 and while he is still V HIGH ENERGY he has mellowed out for sure and loves to cuddle.
Ooooh thank you Madeline!! 🥹 Reading these comments makes me think Betty might be this bananas forever, but everyone tells us she will chill eventually! We will continue to be obsessed with her, no matter what. Thank you for sharing with me, it truly means so much 😭💕
Just reading this made me well up with tears! I too have a high energy dog who cherishes any and all moments with strangers… three years old and she still has this same energy. She is almost offended if someone walks by without saying hi 🥲
I’ve seen faces light up and even a man burst into tears for an animal showing him unconditional love. Animals really are love in its purest form!! Such a special read, thank you for sharing!
Oh Samantha, thank you so much for reading and sharing! 😭 We’ve had to work hard with Betty (and are still working!) on not saying hi to everyone all the time 😂 She used to whine when people would walk by her! She’s much better now, and when she’s allowed to say hi she completely melts. She loves everyone and everything. She truly embodies it like it seems like your pup does 🥹 And omgggg if anyone cried saying hi to a dog (or Betty!), I would be a puddle on the floor 😭😭😭 Our animals are so so special. Phew ok I’m crying again brb lol
“She is love,” just wrecked me, Kristen. A lovely article which reminded me how we wished for our cat to settle down from his attempts to kill us and become cuddly. He’s 13 now and very snuggly, but he also has late stage kidney disease so our time is short. I’m going to go find him now, thanks for the reminder to love him while we can.💕
Oh Sheila, this comment has wrecked me! 😭 Our animals are so so special. Sending so much love to you and your sweet cat. It means so much to me that you read and shared, thank you so much 😭💕
Also I’ve had my now 15.5 year old dog since he was three months and he was the saaaaame way. Absolute nut until he was like…10 and then he slowed to normal dog crazy. He also NEVER CARED ABOUT ME until a few years ago. I mean he loved me but he was too busy with his puppy adventures to care or want to hang or cuddle or anything.
Now in his senior years he’s the CUDDLIEST boy ever. It’s coming! It just takes more time for the crazy stubborn ones I think 😆
Oh Angela tysm for sharing!! 😭 Our previous dog was so chill, we called him our meditation teacher hahaha. Betty is the complete opposite 🤣 Your senior pup seems like the sweetest! Hoping Betty will chill a little more but maybe she is destined to keep us on our toes like it seems like your pup has for a long time!! 🥹🐶💕
It's an adventure for sure! 😆 But it's true, he's taught me SO much over the last 15 years and I'm sure your Betty, on top of being the most adorable fluffball, will do the same!
This was so sweet to read! Very Barbie on the bench vibes (aka sobbing my heart out).
I love what you shared around allowing ourselves to experience unbridled joy (or not, as the case may be). I find the most difficult part nowadays is translating the emotions into words in order to share with others. And I think you're right that we limit ourselves, as though it is some form of protection from feeling and sharing it so fully, in case the people we share it with don't feel the same way. I love posts like this that make me think further on the human experience - thank you for sharing!
GIRL tysm for saying how difficult it is to find words sometimes. As soon as the moment happened I was immediately like, omg I have to write about this 😂 But then as I sat down to write it, I wasn’t even sure what to say. Why did this moment make me cry? Where did the emotion come from? Putting my finger on it took time and I’m proud of myself for sitting with it, mulling it over and ultimately realizing it was just pure joy—in its simplest form. I’m so grateful you took the time to read and share it means so much to me 🥹
Oh also the illustrations from 101 Dalmatians is some of the most beautiful artwork ever to have existed and I jumped for JOY when I saw it on your image! 😍
This was such a beautiful read Kristen!! 🦋🦋🦋I’m swirling with butterflies but I ESPECIALLY felt this line: “Unbridled joy seems hard to come by these days. It’s like we don’t want to lean in too hard, because we might look dumb or silly or be judged for something that we truly enjoy, so we stifle our excitement. We tamp it down to protect ourselves.”
I am also well into my 30s and it took me… until my 30s…! To truly embrace expressing that excitement and joy without impressment, tho of course I am still trying to get better at it. I am also so inspired whenever I interact with anyone who just expresses love and joy out in the open and without any concern. Yes, it’s a sad reality: some people are uncomfortable around that kind of joy. But that’s their own issue!!! Ugh anyway: another great one Kristen!!!
(ps assuming based on your bio haha but I am also an 87 baby ❤️)
Yes 1987!! 🫶🏼 Tysm for reading Andrew, watching these two inspired me to lean into joy, no matter how cringey I might think I am 🥹😭 To joy!! 🥂
I LOVE OLD LADIES ugh that’s my demographic that kind of lady that just gets it “animals are love” are you kidding profound I love her and will one day be her 😂🥹 this post made me cry I feel the same way that joy can be so hard to come by at times but it’s in the little moments we can be in touch with it again! big fan of yours Kristen!
Me toooo!! 🥹👵🏼💕 Literal icon, she was so sweet and wonderful 😭 Thank you so much for reading and sharing Liz, it truly means so much to meeee!
Reading this make me smile so big. That lady is right. Animals are love. What a beautiful interaction and how you wrote it, I could see everything in my mind happening like a movie. And yes, how much we do see when we put our phones down and are present. Hopefully we all can do this more often. Btw-Betty is adorable ❤️
Oohhh thank you so much for reading!! 🥹💕 Reminding myself to put my phone down for the rest of my Sunday 🥰 xoxoxo!
Why am I tearing up while reading this! I absolutely love these kinds of kind and genuine interactions with strangers that feel like they really remind you about why we live and are social creatures who should exclaim with joy and engagement with others. Love that you shared this as well.
Ahhhh yes!! Little moments with neighbors like this can be so special 🥹 Thank you so much for reading and sharing! 😭💕
This gave me the warm fuzzies!! What a beautiful moment 🥹 Betty might just be the cutest little girl I've ever seen
Ohhhh thank you Ella! Betty says thank you tooo! 🥹🐩💕
Animal and old people are the greatest teachers and will always show you there is still love in this world this definitely brought a smile to my face
Yes yes, our GREATEST teachers 🥹 Thank you so much for reading Servontay! 🫶🏼✨💕
Keep dropping those gems you have a loyal reader!
Omg Kristen!!! This was beautiful!! Now you have me on the verge of tears. Our animals really are love. My poodle mix is now going on 3 and while he is still V HIGH ENERGY he has mellowed out for sure and loves to cuddle.
Ugh what a sweet story. 🩷🩷
Ooooh thank you Madeline!! 🥹 Reading these comments makes me think Betty might be this bananas forever, but everyone tells us she will chill eventually! We will continue to be obsessed with her, no matter what. Thank you for sharing with me, it truly means so much 😭💕
Just reading this made me well up with tears! I too have a high energy dog who cherishes any and all moments with strangers… three years old and she still has this same energy. She is almost offended if someone walks by without saying hi 🥲
I’ve seen faces light up and even a man burst into tears for an animal showing him unconditional love. Animals really are love in its purest form!! Such a special read, thank you for sharing!
Oh Samantha, thank you so much for reading and sharing! 😭 We’ve had to work hard with Betty (and are still working!) on not saying hi to everyone all the time 😂 She used to whine when people would walk by her! She’s much better now, and when she’s allowed to say hi she completely melts. She loves everyone and everything. She truly embodies it like it seems like your pup does 🥹 And omgggg if anyone cried saying hi to a dog (or Betty!), I would be a puddle on the floor 😭😭😭 Our animals are so so special. Phew ok I’m crying again brb lol
“She is love,” just wrecked me, Kristen. A lovely article which reminded me how we wished for our cat to settle down from his attempts to kill us and become cuddly. He’s 13 now and very snuggly, but he also has late stage kidney disease so our time is short. I’m going to go find him now, thanks for the reminder to love him while we can.💕
Oh Sheila, this comment has wrecked me! 😭 Our animals are so so special. Sending so much love to you and your sweet cat. It means so much to me that you read and shared, thank you so much 😭💕
This is the most wholesome thing I’ve ever read 🥹
Also I’ve had my now 15.5 year old dog since he was three months and he was the saaaaame way. Absolute nut until he was like…10 and then he slowed to normal dog crazy. He also NEVER CARED ABOUT ME until a few years ago. I mean he loved me but he was too busy with his puppy adventures to care or want to hang or cuddle or anything.
Now in his senior years he’s the CUDDLIEST boy ever. It’s coming! It just takes more time for the crazy stubborn ones I think 😆
Oh Angela tysm for sharing!! 😭 Our previous dog was so chill, we called him our meditation teacher hahaha. Betty is the complete opposite 🤣 Your senior pup seems like the sweetest! Hoping Betty will chill a little more but maybe she is destined to keep us on our toes like it seems like your pup has for a long time!! 🥹🐶💕
It's an adventure for sure! 😆 But it's true, he's taught me SO much over the last 15 years and I'm sure your Betty, on top of being the most adorable fluffball, will do the same!
This was so sweet to read! Very Barbie on the bench vibes (aka sobbing my heart out).
I love what you shared around allowing ourselves to experience unbridled joy (or not, as the case may be). I find the most difficult part nowadays is translating the emotions into words in order to share with others. And I think you're right that we limit ourselves, as though it is some form of protection from feeling and sharing it so fully, in case the people we share it with don't feel the same way. I love posts like this that make me think further on the human experience - thank you for sharing!
GIRL tysm for saying how difficult it is to find words sometimes. As soon as the moment happened I was immediately like, omg I have to write about this 😂 But then as I sat down to write it, I wasn’t even sure what to say. Why did this moment make me cry? Where did the emotion come from? Putting my finger on it took time and I’m proud of myself for sitting with it, mulling it over and ultimately realizing it was just pure joy—in its simplest form. I’m so grateful you took the time to read and share it means so much to me 🥹
Oh also the illustrations from 101 Dalmatians is some of the most beautiful artwork ever to have existed and I jumped for JOY when I saw it on your image! 😍
YES ugh so gorg I wanna look like my pup!!! 🐩
What a sweet story! You never know how you (or your dog) can influence someone's day for the better. Meant to be!
Yes yes yes!! What a gift 🥹Thank you for reading Kayli!! 🫶🏼✨💕
Omg! I’m crying just reading this!! “Animals are love”?!?? Are you kidding! This women had to be your guardian angel!
Girl I was a MESS, literal angels everywhere!! 😭😭😭