Dogs are really pure creatures. They display a sense of affection and love that most humans cannot compare to. But sometimes, life gets hard for some dogs when they are deprived of their sight or sound. However, dogs, being the wholesome animals that they are become extra special even in such scenarios. Rachel (@rachelhmarie) recently shared a post where she was reunited with her old deaf and blind dog, Halo.
Image Source: TikTok | @rachelhmarie
The short clip has gone viral, getting over 4.5 million views on the social media site. The owner happened to be away from the adorable dog for two very long months and finally got to see her again. In the video, we see the individual approaching the dog and showing them their palm. The dog does not recognize them for a while until it manages to get a few sniffs and realizes that she has been reunited with her owner. In another video's caption, Rachel clarified that Halo was fully deaf and only 80% blind, which meant that she could see a person's shadow and smell them.
Image Source: TikTok | @rachelhmarie
Image Source: TikTok | @birdie_145
Image Source: TikTok | @maryannsnow5
She begins to send out small screams of happiness while wagging her tail eagerly as the owner sits down to spend some quality time with her. People on the site loved the video and shared their thoughts in the comments section. @pot_h3ad commented, "All I could think is she could feel someone coming and didn't know who or what it was until he actually smelt you. Do not leave again." @lolambiee said, "Dogs barking like that MELTS my heart. That baby missed you."
A few years back, April Licata lost her dog, Piper, when she opened the front door to let her dog go outside. When she checked after some time, she was shocked to discover that Piper had disappeared. The Licata family searched extensively until they received a call from the local animal shelter, informing them that an anonymous individual had found Piper and brought her to the shelter. The reunion between the dog and April's son, Carter, will probably leave you with moist eyes.
Upon the adorable dog's initial disappearance, April made a post on Facebook, saying, "Last night the love of Carter's life ran away, his pug Piper, or she was picked up. I got distracted with the boys and when I went to let her and Jake [the other dog] in, only Jake was there. #SeriousMomGuilt. She's a two-year-old pug that's very sweet but may think you're playing a game with her if you try and catch her. Can you please share and help us bring her home?"
Even though many people on the site offered words of support, there was no news of anybody having seen the dog. This was when they received a call from the local animal shelter, Genesee Country, informing them that a pug matching Piper's description had been dropped off there. April said in an interview, "My husband and I were going out to dinner and honestly, there was an outcry of joy in the truck. We were shocked and elated!"
Carter was out of town and didn't know that his precious canine companion had been found. So, the parents decided to keep it a surprise for him when he came back. April uploaded a video of the heartwarming meeting. In the video, Piper and April are in their car. The pug eagerly looks out the window as Carter comes to the car. While he is initially shocked, he opens the door, hugs his dog and tears of joy begin to flow. April stated that the entire incident was a "Christmas miracle."
Ladder leads out of darkness.Photo credit 
Woman's reflection in shadow.Photo credit 
Young woman frazzled.Photo credit 
Robin Williams performs for military men and women as part of a United Service Organization (USO) show on board Camp Phoenix in December 2007
Gif of Robin Williams via
Will your current friends still be with you after seven years?
Professor shares how many years a friendship must last before it'll become lifelong
Think of your best friend. How long have you known them? Growing up, children make friends and say they’ll be best friends forever. That’s where “BFF” came from, for crying out loud. But is the concept of the lifelong friend real? If so, how many years of friendship will have to bloom before a friendship goes the distance? Well, a Dutch study may have the answer to that last question.
Sociologist Gerald Mollenhorst and his team in the Netherlands did extensive research on friendships and made some interesting findings in his surveys and studies. Mollenhorst found that over half of your friendships will “shed” within seven years. However, the relationships that go past the seven-year mark tend to last. This led to the prevailing theory that most friendships lasting more than seven years would endure throughout a person’s lifetime.
In Mollenhorst’s findings, lifelong friendships seem to come down to one thing: reciprocal effort. The primary reason so many friendships form and fade within seven-year cycles has much to do with a person’s ages and life stages. A lot of people lose touch with elementary and high school friends because so many leave home to attend college. Work friends change when someone gets promoted or finds a better job in a different state. Some friends get married and have children, reducing one-on-one time together, and thus a friendship fades. It’s easy to lose friends, but naturally harder to keep them when you’re no longer in proximity.
Some people on Reddit even wonder if lifelong friendships are actually real or just a romanticized thought nowadays. However, older commenters showed that lifelong friendship is still possible:
“I met my friend on the first day of kindergarten. Maybe not the very first day, but within the first week. We were texting each other stupid memes just yesterday. This year we’ll both celebrate our 58th birthdays.”
“My oldest friend and I met when she was just 5 and I was 9. Next-door neighbors. We're now both over 60 and still talk weekly and visit at least twice a year.”
“I’m 55. I’ve just spent a weekend with friends I met 24 and 32 years ago respectively. I’m also still in touch with my penpal in the States. I was 15 when we started writing to each other.”
“My friends (3 of them) go back to my college days in my 20’s that I still talk to a minimum of once a week. I'm in my early 60s now.”
“We ebb and flow. Sometimes many years will pass as we go through different things and phases. Nobody gets buttsore if we aren’t in touch all the time. In our 50s we don’t try and argue or be petty like we did before. But I love them. I don’t need a weekly lunch to know that. I could make a call right now if I needed something. Same with them.”
Maintaining a friendship for life is never guaranteed, but there are ways, psychotherapists say, that can make a friendship last. It’s not easy, but for a friendship to last, both participants need to make room for patience and place greater weight on their similarities than on the differences that may develop over time. Along with that, it’s helpful to be tolerant of large distances and gaps of time between visits, too. It’s not easy, and it requires both people involved to be equally invested to keep the friendship alive and from becoming stagnant.
As tough as it sounds, it is still possible. You may be a fortunate person who can name several friends you’ve kept for over seven years or over seventy years. But if you’re not, every new friendship you make has the same chance and potential of being lifelong.