Sure, I'm Tidbit's Momma.
Sworn to be her guardian, her protector.
And Scratch is Tidbit's daughter, her firstborn.
Tidbit is the true guardian, the true protector.
And we are her charges.
We are the lives & loves of her life,
and she of ours.

Tidbit is my "Little One"
as she was the runt o' the litter & nuttin' but a bundle o' fur
when rescued from goin' to the pound seven years ago.
Just a couple o' months later she contracted parvo
and nearly died right before my very eyes.
She survived her first crisis, the angels were on her side.

A year later, she dropped li'l Scratch into my life.
What a gift watchin' her in the role o' Momma.
She did shine like the sun.
She seemed born & bred to be a momma, a nurturer.
She became Scratch's guardian, protector from day one.
I think even then she was honin' the skills
she would forever need to survive
the often cold human world in which she lives.

It wasn't long before her skills were put to the test.
Here I will spare the details.
It is enough to say that my Momma Tidbit
would take a few beatings meant for me
from the man I was married to at the time.
She was my guardian, my protector.

On a cold, dark winter night
I was forced to leave Tidbit & Scratch behind
when I left my domestic violence marriage.
Tidbit's guardianship skills would be tested to the limit.
For 3 months my girls were put into the cold woods
to fend for themselves, at the mercy o' the elements,
as well as the wild dogs o' the wood.

The journey that I would take that took me from them
would be one o' the most difficult o' my life.
I would travel a long, dirt trodden path
from a place o' not caring whether I lived or died
to wanting to live not merely to survive.
But I traveled not alone,
for I had cyber sisters as my temporary guardians,
family as temporary protectors
and the will to get my girls back as my sole destiny.
That destiny was reached on Mothers Day, 2003.

Tidbit & Scratch were brought back to me
by my Uncle Billy & Aunt Helen.
The greatest family reunion I've ever been a part of!

The man I left behind had been Scratch's nightmare.
Drunk, I assume, he'd hit her with the car
and didn't get her veterinary care, due to cost, he claimed.
She was badly lame, wouldn't use one front leg at all.
She received vet care & a whole lotta love
and she is doin' just fine today.
She limps when tired & doesn't put a lot o' weight on her leg,
but for the most part time has healed her physical wounds.
Emotionally, I think she still thinks ev'ry meal is her last.
But I assure you, it is not.

The wild dog o' the wood had been Tidbit's nightmare.
She arrived ready to give birth to a litter o' pups.
She was so mal-nourished,
physically & emotionally stressed to the max.
But came the day she was ready to deliver
and with cyber sissies standin' by
Momma Tidbit did what she does best;
she became momma, then nurturer,
protector and guardian.

One pup from that litter was kept by my Uncle Billy.
NewBe is her name...a symbol o' New Beginnings.
She came into the world loved by one and by all.
And she still is today.
As are her sister Scratch and her
Momma Tidbit and her Momma Ruthi.

Today you'll find Scratch, silly as can be,
my "Scratchy Sunshine" I call her.
Not a day goes by that she doesn't make me laugh.
She's kind o' mean on occasion,
especially with other dogs or when food is involved,
but mostly she's a lover dog.

Today you'll find Tidbit always nearby.
Always on guard, my guardian.
Always alert, my protector.
Always the Momma, Scratch's nurturer.
When you see the warm glow leave her eyes
and they turn a bit blue-green,
she is calm and ready to retire.
But Lord help the one who puts the fire in her eye!
For it is then that her talent and skills, well honed,
enable her to reach deep into her soul
and she becomes true guardian, true protector.

Today you will find Ruthi - right here!
Never far away from her cyber family, nor for long.
They are the reason I am alive & well today,
The reason me & my girls are with you today.
Nuttin' & nobody will ever take this family away from me.

I love workin' on my webhome, abitosunshine,
And love spreadin' a bit o' sunshine in cyberland.
I love to shoot pool & ride motorcycles.
I love the outdooors, sunshine, oceans & streams.
I love all animals & trees & flowers & sun showers.
I'm a romantic & I love deeply, to a fault.
If ever there was a fool for love, it is me.
I yearn for the day a man loves me just the way that I am.
I'm needy, but not greedy,
a perfectly balanced Libran!
I'm a Christian, a Believer that's goin' to Heaven.
But that can wait, I got a whole lot o' life yet to live!
Bein' a Christian doesn't mean I can do no wrong;
It just means I can & yet will still get where I'm goin'!

I've ups & downs in my life ev'ry day & in ev'ry way,
but I know that I can handle them.
For I do not walk this path alone.
I may occasionally fall down,
but I get up stronger & do what needs to be done.

I am o' the spirit o' the sun.
Now let me tell you what this really means:
Sunshine can be warm & cuddly & bright as can be.
But the one thing some always seem to forget
is that the sunshine can also burn your ass!
And when crossed, I've been known to tan a hide or two.

I'm a mother, one with a dark stormy son.
I'm daughter to a woman killed by the hands o' her husband.
I'm a sister, a niece, a cousin and an aunt o' blood.
But the greatest family role I've been given?
I am a sister - by choice.
To the ladies o' Women With A Unique Soul.

I am a woman.
A Woman With A Unique Soul.
I am Ruthi.