When a Golden Is Lonely

February 6, 2024

Beloved:
          Not when my kids dogsit.  Not when others dogsit.  Only for me does Birdy wake up at 4 AM seemingly desperate for her breakfast.  This came up in a recent session when my therapist asked how I am sleeping.  Having golden retriever experience herself, we explored Birdy’s possible issues and decided it is behavioral, not nutritional.  She isn’t hungry.  She’s lonely.  So she wakes me up to play with her.  That’s why there are toys on my bed every morning too.  And towels she’s dragged in from the kitchen and the bathroom.
          I can’t believe it took me so long to figure this out.  Two things all golden retrievers cannot get enough of:  tasty treats and affection.  A subset of them, like our Rosie, are completely obsessed with tennis balls, but they too never tire of being loved on.  Birdy climbs into strangers’ laps without invitation.  And she wakes me up at night when she’s already squashed up against me.  This morning it began around 4:15 AM.  I learned I can sort of play with her, without totally waking up.  I scratched her head and told her to lay down.  Then I scratched her belly for a while and we both fell back asleep in almost no time at all.  Not quite as nice as sleeping deep all through the night, but not as aggravating as dragging myself to the kitchen to scoop kibble and her medicine.  At 6:30 she started shoving me again and I was glad to get up to feed and let her out.
          That a creature as loved as her gets lonely is a lesson for me, no doubt.  Maybe for the rest of us too.  Her incapacity to believe that she is loved while up against the breathing body of the one who loves her so is a state of being to which I can relate.  Especially in that deepest time of night when it feels like all the world’s asleep, lonely comes more easily than loved.  I don’t want the sound of the Spirit’s silence, which in the daytime works for me readily.  I want the reassurance only full-on attention and affection provide.  Maybe I could practice believing that such reassurance is within reach already, for the taking even, if I have the faith and confidence to lean in, snuggle in and rest in what has already been given, here, now, in the day and in the deepest night.

~ peace & prayers my friends,
pastor annette

Birdy watching tv. 
We both love British crime shows. 


          We had 25 people at Wednesday Night Supper last week and enough food to feed everyone.  As always, you are always welcome, even if you cannot bring anything to the meal.  You are welcome to bring friends - and it helps so much if you sign up or email to let us know you are coming, but things work out no matter what.  Some asked for the beef/noodles recipe.  Here it is as best I remember.


Church Supper Beef & Noodles ~ Pastor Annette
What I Used

• 3 lb chuck roast, trimmed to 1 inch cubes
• 16 oz brown mushrooms, washed, dried, and quartered
• 1 large onion, sliced thin
• 6 oz can of tomato paste
• salt, pepper, oregano, thyme (whatever seasonings you like)
• cooking oil
• 1 quart of beef stock or broth
• ¼ cup sour cream
• 32 oz package of egg noodles

How I Did It

• Put cubed meat in a bowl and toss with salt, pepper and other seasonings.  I used about a tablespoon of salt, a teaspoon of pepper and a teaspoon each of thyme and oregano.  I’d have used Lawry’s seasoning salt in place of salt/pepper if we had it in the church kitchen.
• Turn on the crockpot, add an inch of beef broth and the tomato paste, stirred well.  cover and let heat up.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy skillet and sear meat in batches, browning on the outside only and moving directly into the crockpot.
• When meat is done, deglaze skillet with a splash of beef broth, pour that into the crockpot, add more oil and brown mushrooms, then onions, just a bit, moving them to the crockpot too.
• Pour remaining beef broth into the crockpot, adding some water if necessary to cover everything and cook on high for 4 hours.
• At 3.5 hours, taste for seasoning adjustment and stir in the sour cream.  Cook noodles according to package directions, drain and serve beside the crockpot.

Notes: 

• For church supper I bought everything but the spices and cooking oil at Aldi’s.
• At home I used a 2-lb roast, half the package of egg noodles, and the same amount of everything else - came out great.
• Instead of deglazing the skillet with beef stock, next time I’m going to use red wine, but still use the beef stock in the crockpot.
• To make it gluten-free, use mashed potatoes or rice instead of noodles.

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