I’ll spend the rest of my life grateful for the small striped cat who will always be my best girl. I’ll spend the rest of my life missing her, too, and hoping if such a reunion is possible that she’s waiting for me when I get there.

But it’s what I can do for them, short of adopting them all—which I cannot do. I will say this a second time, more for me than for anyone else: I CANNOT ADOPT ALL THE CATS. Yet I find this small bit of service to be so much more rewarding than you might expect.

I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate the day of love than to volunteer at the Canines and Cupids dog adoption event this weekend here in San Diego.

I probably should have been thinking last night about freedom and independence and bombs bursting in air, but mostly I was thinking about my childhood dog, Jazz, (named after the star jasmine flower) and how she used to run and hide in the backyard shed at the first sign of fireworks.