Gospel of Karin

I’m a theologian who loves animals and loves to paint. I recently set up an online art gallery where I’m selling prints of my paintings. If interested, you can see them here:

http://KarinLauria.imagekind.com/

All the best,
Karin

Image: “Optimism,” by Karin Lauria. Copyright Karin Lauria.

Stay warm…

What you know first stays with you, my Papa says.
But just in case I forget
I will take a twig of the cottonwood tree
I will take a little bag of prairie dirt
I cannot take the sky.
And I’ll try hard to remember the songs,
And the sound of the rooster at dawn,
And how soft the cow’s ears are
When you touch them,
So the baby will know
What he knew first.
And so I can remember too.

—From What You Know First, by Patricia MacLachlan and Barry Mosher

Finding the Way Back with Animals
This morning, I heard the sound of barking through an open window. It was a moment of happy recognition; I knew the octave, the pattern, the cadence. Every bark is a little different, you know. This one came from my dog, Henry (Henry James to be precise). Henry is a baritone barker, except on those occasions when his bark suddenly breaks high, like the warbling voice of a teenage boy.

Diesel, my other dog, is a naggy contralto. He is strident and imperious, especially at mealtimes. By the look of him, you might expect him to bark like James Earl Jones or Barry White (if they were dogs). But this morning, it was Henry who I heard barking in the backyard, the sound thrusting forward and dissipating wide and fast across the sky. It wrapped around the house, drifted through the window, and met me where I stood. It emerged from back to fore and I received it joyfully, this comforting, familiar sound.

Years earlier, I held a four pound puppy in my hand. Henry was not yet Henry. He was “Blue,” a reference to the little blue string of yarn tied loosely around his neck to distinguish him from his siblings. A few weeks later, my ex-husband and I took him home. We became coo-ers; “Blue” was so cute. “Blue” was so happy. Also, “Blue” peed everywhere. Cute as he was, I was determined to maintain some house rules. Rule 1: he will never sleep on the bed. Rule 2: he will never get up on the furniture. I liked this little pup alright, but it was not my idea to get a dog. Everything would be ok as long as the rules were followed. But Blue grew into Henry, Henry Fenry, Hank, Cutie Wootie, Baby, Bubba, Bub, and Bubble. He learned to answer to all of these weird endearments and more. Five months later, he was sleeping on the bed. Several months after that, we adopted Diesel. Another dog. What on earth was I thinking? Read the rest of this entry »

I’m posting this pic for no other reason but that my dog Diesel is beautiful!