A tenured English professor at Miami Dade College (MDC), Liza is also a Miami Beach buddy of our founder Jodee. Clever and kind, Liza is one of our go-to wise women when we need perspective. And it was Liza who took the photo of her handsome Cavalier King Charles Spaniel that appears on the popular Little Reminders design.
That gorgeous shot of Bandit combing the beach also now serves as a touching tribute to the sweet love of Liza’s life that was lost at the close of 2019. Earlier that year — for Valentine’s Day — we asked Liza to write about a love that all dog lovers know and share. From here on, we’ll let this wonderful writer use her own words:
I’d like to tell you my love story of sorts. Having lived on Miami Beach for 20 years, I’ve always taken great pleasure in running and walking the beach … you can imagine those special times of day, right before the sun peeks up over the eastern horizon and as it’s sinking into the West casting its rose-colored light on the ocean.
In 2003, the stars aligned, and I met a wee furball with a fondness for sandy paws. With this eight-week old King Cavalier Spaniel, I was utterly smitten! While he’s officially Bandit Greenberg, I affectionately named him Bandito, as he snuck right in and stole my heart.
Bandit was a rambunctious puppy full of energy and affection, and we had the perfect training ground: The beach! We ran every day for years. As Bandit (and I) grew older, we slowed into leisurely strolls every sunrise. I knew it filled me with positive energy, and I noticed it did the same for my little guy. And that’s still our morning ritual — our quiet time when we rarely see others — and an opportunity to enjoy each other, and the beauty of each new sandy, salty dawn.
At 16, Bandit is now mostly blind so — in the low light of the pre-dawn hours — he stays close by my side. I have become his seeing-eye human! He’s feeling no pain, but dementia causes him to bark at everything and nothing at times, sometimes for hours on end, and cancer is slowly but surely taking over his adorable Disney Dog body. Yet the love story continues. Our morning walks are more precious than ever — they’re still our quality time together — and partly what keeps my beach buddy going. We both soak in the beauty and quiet energy needed to start a new day.
I see our morning walks as full of glowing potential, an invitation to make the best of the day ahead, so I’ve always wanted to capture that feeling, tuck it in my pocket, and spread it around. Imagine my surprise and delight when Cardthartic wanted to publish one of my favorite shots of Bandito in the morning. Whether with a sunrise, the nuzzle of a cold nose, the comfort of community, we can all fall in love hundreds of times each day. I thank Bandit Greenberg for showing me that, along with so much pure love.❤️
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