I'm so sporadic in my blogging. I hate it. I've been meaning to write about this for nearly 3 months now. I haven't even written it in my private journal, but I'll get around to it.

My parents lost my dog in August. Her name is Jasmine, and she was wonderful. She was house trained, had a very cute face, and loved me unconditionally. I had her for 11 years. There was a period where I didn't care for her very much anymore. That was pretty much all of junior high and high school. Then in college, for some reason, I decided to start loving her again. I think it's because Connie left. It was her dog initially, but now it was mine. So Jasmine was my dog. She always wanted to be petted and she slept in my bed. Her tail curled over her body and you could always see her anus when she stood. She could still run and jump on the bed at 11 years. She had at least 4 more to go. So I started loving her more in the past few years. And especially after I moved to Irvine, I would love her so much whenever I saw her. And she would always remember me, thank goodness. I don't think she remembered Connie anymore. So even though I still cry when I think about her, I am so relieved that I have no regrets about how I treated her. I am so thankful that I made the decision to start loving her again. She knew I loved her the day she was lost.

My parents still keep her leash and collar. My mom said, "In Vietnam, I knew a family who gave their dog away to someone miles away. After a few months, the dog found its way back home." Oh it breaks my heart. God, I miss her.

The reason I'm sharing this with you is that this is a prime example of living like there's no tomorrow. I thought I was going to have her for another few years, but I treated her like I could lose her any minute. I can think of several very important people in my life who I would have many regrets with if I lost them tomorrow. But it's hard to let everyone know how much you love them. It takes time for one thing, but it's also awkward. I know one way that will help me have less regrets: picking up the phone when a friend calls. I so often ignore calls because I just don't feel like talking. But they're reaching out to me for a reason, and I should really start to embrace that reason.