“This is my sense of those two men on the TV. One has the clearest scent to the ball and the other one is distracted with too many smells.”…

Dear Laura,
Do the animals know what is happening to our economy?
Sincerely, Zoe
Dear Zoe,
The other day, a cat I was speaking to said, “Can you ask my family to play the new meditation CD they brought home first thing in the morning? What we listen to now gets everyone depressed and sets a somber tone for the rest of the day.” It turned out they listen NPR news in the morning.
Last night while watching the finial Presidential Debate at a friends house, I watched their Labrador Retriever, Tanner, scan the people in the room, flip his toy in his mouth, scratch his back on the floor, grab a giant bone to momentarily chew on and then intently watch the people again. He offered his body for me to scratch and I said to him, “Hey Tanner, I want you to watch tonight so that I can interview you later.” He replied, “Do I have to watch the TV because it is hard for me to understand.” I told him he did not. Then he said, “I noticed that during these debates sometimes people laugh, but their laugh has no joy in it.”
I asked him this morning, “What do you know about the economy and its effects on the American people.” Here is Tanner’s reply, “I have been thinking about what I am going to say to you. I see a lot of people in town and you know what I notice? It feels like they are all searching for something and they are getting upset. It is like when I am at the beach and I can’t find a ball and I look and look and there isn’t one. It is depressing. It is even worse when MY ball is lost and I can’t find it. That is what everyone seems like they are feeling. I want to tell them that they should go to the tennis courts or the store and they will find lots of them. My dad says they should spend money and that makes sense. Because when my person can’t find me a ball she buys me one. This is my sense of those two men on the TV. One has the clearest scent to the ball and the other one is distracted with too many smells. I know this from watching people watch them. One man is easy for people to follow and the other one gets everyone lost. My people have what you call a positive out-look which makes sunlight attracted to them no matter what. In town, I notice many people becoming darker and darker and it is not just because the days are getting shorter. Their minds are forgetting about the sunlight. If I cant find what I am searching for. It helps me to take a short nap, maybe wade in the water, play with my person and then go at it again a little farther down the beach. I have learned there is always another ball. Just that belief makes everything seem ok.
Tanner wanted to talk about people losing their homes, but we have run out space. Perhaps we will here his insights at a later date.