Changes when stepping in another stage

A dog’s purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

    Previously on the former chapters of this book, Toby was euthanized due to being unadoptable.     

    After taking a long nap, Toby waked up, opened his eyes, and found that he was brought to not only a new period but also a new space. Everything around him was both strange and familiar with him. Familiar was that he still had siblings and Mother keeping company with him. Familiar was that there was still someone taking care of them. Familiar was that he was still a helpless and weak puppy. But his siblings and Mother were not the same dog at all. But the guy who took care of them was not as tender as Senora (the owner of the Yard) did. But Toby, himself, didn’t have the same appearance anymore.

    Being in a new environment, Toby always made comparison between past and present, trying to find the shadow of past. It makes me ponder that why people always feel like finding the shadow of past? I think it can be related to my own experience when entering in senior high school. Being in a new school, I missed my old friends in junior high school. So, I tried to find whether there were anything in common with my old friends, aiming to have a sense of belonging or something. By doing so, my new classmates would as if become my old friends that I was familiar with. In my opinion, the reason why people want to find the shadow of the past is because of loneliness and insecurity. They still look back to the past, missing people or things in days of old.

    Luckily, Toby was rescued by Ethan’s mother when he was dying in a car from heat exhaust-station. Being picked up and carried into a house, Toby had never imagined such a thing to be possible. What’s more, Toby got a new name which is Bailey. Then, Bailey began his second life with Ethan. Being with Ethan from the second they woke up until the moment they went to sleep, Bailey found what is so-called love this time. He realized that the love between Senora and Ethan were quite different. Senora’s love was general to every dog in the pack; however, Ethan’s love was full of sincerity that they were the center of each other’s worlds.

    Not only did Bailey find his new life of purpose, to accompany Ethan, but also he learn many things that he didn’t know before, and thus he started to enjoy himself. In my point of view, not looking back to the past is an important thing. According to the book, I observe some points that may be helpful to get rid of the past. First, find a new purpose when stepping to another stage in life. By doing so, it’s beneficial to have you pay more attention to the present instead of the past. Next, learn something new to enrich your daily life. Enrichment of yourself will be able to get a sense of achievement, which can make you consider that your life in this moment is much more wonderful than in the past. Last but not least, have someone keep company with you. Just like Ethan and Bailey in the book, they are the center of each other’s worlds, fulfilling each other’s mental needs.

    In conclusion, we should not spend in stagnation day by day. Instead, keep moving ahead and enjoy every moment is the most important thing I learnt from Bailey’s life in the story.