Meet Louie!

It was a beautiful fall Sunday afternoon in September of 2013. I was shopping and noticed PetSmart was conducting an adopt-a-pet event and decided to check it out. There was one little guy who was very docile and very regal looking. The nameplate on his crate said CHANDLER. He ignored everyone until finally, he turned and looked at me with his big brown eyes. It was love at first sight. 

I decided to adopt him, brought him home, and named him Louie. I introduced him to my grandchildren and my neighbors. It was grand as everyone loved Louie.

Some hours after we arrived home, Louie began to display many challenging behaviors that made me question my decision to adopt him. He got up on my furniture, he got up on my bed, he whined, he growled, he showed some signs of aggressiveness. He was a different dog than when I first brought him home. It ended up being a real struggle to be with him. I loved him when he was a good little dog, and he was sweet. I didn’t love him so much when he started to act out a bit.

At that point, I made two distinct choices: I chose to keep him, and even more importantly, I chose to love him. And that choice meant that whether I felt like it or not, I had to be very intentional about demonstrating love to him. That lesson was transformative, not just for Louie, but for me as well.

And so began our adventure. Ever since, we have been on a mission to help others truly understand love, and how to be loving people by being patient and kind. We do this through the power of the story, through books, blogs, keynotes, and storytimes. Louie continues to provide material that we use to share stories and change lives.