Random Acts of Kindness

An Ode to Opie

Have you ever sat back and thought about the beauty of the world around you and how one decision, one act, one moment can bring so much joy and happiness and change your world forever?

This the story how Opie,  his loving Mom, a pair of socks, and a stuffed Opie altered the path of my life and filled it with love, happiness, and a friendship that will last a lifetime.

When you read quotes that say things like, "You don't know what someone else is going through, choose kindness." This is the spirit of Opie and his Mom!  Let me explain...

I was in a place of deep sadness, I had lost my Dad after a long illness, my sweet MadZ-Pup crossed the rainbow bridge a few weeks later and I was feeling lost. I had never been a social media person, but had stumbled upon Twitter and Opie's account.  He was a golden like my MadZ-Pup and he exuded happiness in it's purest form.  I created a personal account and would read his posts and let his love fill my heart with love and light.  I started to reply to him and he replied back and I fell in love with a dog on Twitter who I had never met; how was this possible?

One day, Opie posted about a pair of socks with his face on them and I knew I needed to have a pair.  I wrote to him and he sent me a link on how to make these custom socks, but I wrote him back and said I wanted to buy a pair with his face on them.  This made him so excited, but what happened next, was where the true magic begins.  Opie and his mom, through a random act of kindness, sent me a pair of socks with Opie's picture on them.  That one moment, where they didn't know what I was going through, but they chose kindness, changed the path of my life forever!

These socks! These very socks, helped heal my heart and made way for the adoption of Linus!  Opie and his Mom didn't know that this one act of kindness would do this, but they sent them anyway and that is what makes them magical! 

Linus came into our world and he was introduced on Twitter, Opie immediately became his friend and they posted and responded to each other regularly. It was a friendship between two dogs that had never met, but that brought joy to not just them but the world around them.  Then I became friends with Opie's Mom, sending messages through Twitter, sharing that I was scared of how I would be able to care for Linus and she sent me a stuffed Opie for Linus to cuddle at night when he was scared.

Soon stuffed Opie would follow us around the house and be Linus' companion wherever he decided to rest. A magical friendship from across Twitter to the real world.

Stuffed Opie was by Linus' side when he crossed the rainbow bridge, he slept next to me while I grieved the loss of Linus and he was with me when we decided to adopt again and again.

Opie is now with Linus across the rainbow bridge and they will be able to play forever, but a piece of them will always live in my heart.  I will share a friendship with Opie's Mom and I will be here to help heal her heart by surrounding her in love and light while she grieves the loss of her magical pup.

I will sit back today, and always, knowing that I just happened on a place called Twitter where this magical pup lived a digital life and how his kindness opened my heart and made the world a happier place.  I have since built many friendships across the Twitterverse, all because of a random act of love and kindness and for this I will forever be grateful! Thank you Opie! Thank you Opie's Mom!

Please take a moment today to give your pups a hug, to reach out to friends and let them know you love them, and bask in the beautify of how a digital world could allow you to love pups near and far.  Sending much love and light to everyone who has touched our lives; please know you are loved!

- Momma K