culture – Bridging the Paradigms: re-connecting people and the planet

August 9, 2011 by Robyn

Vote yes Yesterday I took the afternoon off to have some fun. I loaded up on tasty candy at my local food co-op and headed off to see Cowboys & Aliens with a new friend. Sure, Wall Street was acting up big time (again, and pointlessly, really, how should we handle a spoiled brat?), but I had time off! What could be as cool as that?

Then I saw it, the sign that changed everything.

“HUG SALE!” it read, in large caps. “HUG SALE!”

Awesome! (Awesome is my new favorite word: spin it right, and everything is awesome.)

Just like that my new economic policy was born.

What works in a world that doesn’t seem workable? Where is our strength? Our refuge?

In hugs. In hugs we trust.

Everything works better with hugs. After all, what is a hug? Acceptance, community, peace, fun, humor. You can trade a hug for food, for a good joke, a flower, a business referral, a chance to make a new friend.

You can weigh hugs for value: a quick handshake between strangers is an ‘almost hug,’ worth a quick, shy smile. A quick two-arm hug is worth a friendly hello and genuine interest in ‘what you do.’ A brief shoulder hug acknowledges that we’re in this together, whatever ‘this’ is, and seats us peacefully around the negotiation table. A full-on body hug is the stuff communities are built on: it’s worth everything.

Hugs are barter that makes sense. Tangible, visible proof that what they’re trying to scare us with won’t work. That maybe they’ll have us all in bread lines before it’s over, but we’ll at least be there together, and then we’ll go out and create a world where all life is working, and playing, where together we can create healthy, balanced lives of integrity and meaning.

What would a hug mean to you? How would you barter a hug?

Oh, yeah, about the afternoon off.

My new friend is delightful: funny, warm, and thoughtful. The candy was delicious (I figured chocolate peanut butter malt balls were a curiosity, and possibly edible, but the yumminess was a bonus!).

And the movie? I haven’t been to a movie in years, and Cowboys & Aliens was worth the wait: played straight, so you were as dumbfounded as the people in that town, and, finally, proud. Thrilled that fundamentally flawed, damaged people could put aside their pettiness and effectively collaborate to save family and community, which included complete strangers (but you just couldn’t resist a naked woman, could you, boys, even though it was pointless?).

Let’s see, we already know we have dim-witted and unpatriotic politicians. Even they should learn something from this movie. Hurry up and see it, guys, then line up for hugs!

Hugs for politicians? Absolutely. Full on body hug. They get my acceptance, my thanks for being such obvious idiots that we don’t have to tolerate them any more, and I get my country back. Fair and square.

Hugs. Barter. Community. Let’s go for it. We have nothing left to lose that wasn’t gone years ago. We have a world to gain. Let’s hug it back.

You in?

Winning National Writing Awards

February 21, 2011 by Robyn

We had a winning table at the Dog Writers Association of America (DWAA) writing awards banquet at the Affinia Hotel in New York City Feb. 13, 2011! This is the DWAA’s 76^th year, a professional association of people writing about dogs in newspapers, magazines, newsletters, books, and in art and photography. We were gathered to honor nominees and winners on the night before the 135^th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at Madison Square Garden.

Here are our table’s winners!

On the left is Julie Reck, DVM, a young vet who owns Home Farewell, a veterinary practice providing pet hospice in the Charlotte, NC area. Articulate and passionate about her difficult work, Julie wrote about providing detailed information on how to determine when your beloved pet’s life is ending. She won the 2010 Best Book, Care and Health Award, for Facing Farewell: A Guide to Making End of Life Decisions for Your Pet. You can find her book at www.facingfarewell.com. Get your vet to stock it!

That’s me in the middle—Robyn M Fritz. I won the 2010 Merial Human-Animal Bond Award for “the work that best highlights the unique relationship between a dog and its owner and best brings to life the concept of the human-animal bond.” It honors my book, Bridging Species: Thoughts and Tales About Our Lives with Dogs. The award came with a $500 cash grant and a $250 travel stipend to attend the banquet. Many thanks to Merial for sponsoring the award, and to the judges who saw that my work, and my book, is about new ways of thinking about creating families with animals, especially with dogs (and cats). You can order autographed copies for yourself and friends here on my site! I was also a finalist for 2010 Best Book – Humor.

On the right is Susan Hartzler, president of Alpha Dog PR in Los Angeles. Susan won the 2010 Angel on a Leash Award for her article, “Therapy Dog Extraordinaire,” in Animal Wellness magazine. The award came with a $250 cash grant. Susan is a smart and savvy PR professional whose business provides the media with up-to-the-minute information about her clients in the hospitality and pet industries. Susan was also a finalist for Internet magazines for DIY Doggie. Susan is holding her service dog, Baldwin, a Puli. You can find them both at www.alphadogpr.com.