P52 Photo Challenge - The "Eyes" of March - Week 11

This week's theme for the P52 photo challenge is The “Eyes” of March. I looked up "Eyes of March" on the internet for some ideas and came across the "Ides of March."

According to Wikipedia, "The word Ides comes from the Latin word 'Idus' and means 'half division' especially in relation to a month. It is a word that was used widely in the Roman calendar indicating the approximate day that was the middle of the month. The term ides was used for the 15th day of the months of March, May, July, and October; and the 13th day of the other months.

^"The Ides of March was a festive day dedicated to the god Mars; and a military parade was usually held.

"In modern times, the term Ides of March is best known as the date on which Julius Caesar was killed in 44 B.C. Caesar was stabbed (23 times) to death in the Roman Senate by a group of conspirators led by Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus. The group included 60 other co-conspirators according to Plutarch.

"According to Plutarch, a seer had foreseen that Caesar would be harmed not later than the Ides of March and on his way to the Theatre of Pompey (where he would be assassinated), Caesar met that seer and joked, 'The ides of March have come,' meaning to say that the prophecy had not been fulfilled, to which the seer replied 'Ay, Caesar; but not gone.'

"This meeting is famously dramatized in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, when Caesar is warned by the soothsayer to 'beware the Ides of March.'"

So, after reading about the Ides of March, I realized that going with theme "The Eyes of March" would be a much easier and more pleasant image to photograph.

Waiting until the last minute, my choices were limited to the dogs and cats. Montague, the golden retriever, seemed to be the most willing subject. Montague was adopted in 2003 shortly after Olivia was adopted.

Sydne (a golden retriever that was part of the family since 1990) needed to be put to sleep right before Olivia was adopted. Sydne's health was failing, and her quality of life diminishing each day. It was the most humane - albeit difficult - decision I had to make up to that point.

After returning from China with Olivia, we went to a pet adoption day at a local mall. Right as we walked in, there was a golden retriever - just like Sydne. We sat down and started petting this excitable, happy dog. The volunteer said, "If you are interested in Montague, don't leave. Someone else will come and adopt him. He's a pure golden retriever [not a mixed breed]."

Montague was taken in by this rescue group after being found by animal control. He stayed at animal control and no one came to claim him. He would have been killed had the rescue group not taken him. When he was found, he was very thin (around 60 pounds) and it was clear that he had been a runaway for some time. They estimated him to be about 1 1/2 to 2 years old.

Montague now is now about 11 years old...a senior. Yet, because of Gretel (another dog we adopted in 2008), he is active, plays daily in the backyard, and is a wonderful companion. He is gentle with the cats; and let them curl up next to him and rest.

He is an excellent watch-dog; and lets anyone who drives up in the driveway or walks by the house on the street that he is the protector of the house and everyone who lives in it.

He truly is part of the family...and our lives are richer because he is with us.