This is Sheriff Peanut Butter Brickle.  We left for our Adventure Of A Lifetime trip almost two years ago.  We left our Florida place for travel and adventures, and to help other animals and people.  But we also left family and friends.  Not just person friends but all of our friends that we used to see every day.  Like the gopher turtles.  Remember them?

We also left our dolphin friends.

Maybe you have your own kind of friends where you live.  I suppose that you do.  I suppose that you appreciate them and talk to them.  Talk to them?  Of course.

When you are so busy, sometimes, you forget all of the friends that you have, because, well, they have always been there.  So when we went back yesterday to one of our old hiking places, I was surprised to see an old friend up in the tree.  The osprey, or sea hawk as some may call him. I just call him Otis.  Otis the Osprey.

Girl Person said that it had been a long time.  And I guess that Otis thought so too.  He decided to put on a big show of flying above us and then he got hungry and went fishing. Then he came back, and and he started moving his nest all around.  Although he was obviously working, he took a moment to say his hellos.  And Girl Person, as usual, got all emotional about it.  She said that in some ways, it was like we had never left.  And she was glad about that.  She was glad that not only did life go on, but that Otis was still here.  Some may say, how do you know that is the same bird?  You know a friend no matter how long it has been since you have seen him.  I know Digby no matter how long it has been since I smelled him.

But Girl Person asked us if we would have noticed if Otis was not there, up in that tree.  Girl Person said that ospreys are special.  She said that there are not many of them left because of pesticides and persons that harm the environment.  Deputy Digby had already tuned out by this point in the conversation.  But I was listening.  You see, ospreys, just like all of us, are affected by what others do.  Even if they are working hard fishing or raising their babies, the fact is, if we don’t change how we are living, others will die.  And how is that living for those left if we have no friends?  If you look up and the osprey isn’t there, what else is gone?  What friend is missing?  Did you play a part in that?  How can we change?

Not many would even know Otis was there because we are so busy, we forget to look up most of the time.  And it is easy to think that we are the most important.  I mean, I know I am the most handsome, but that is not the point.

How did we start feeling so important…like we were the only ones that mattered?  A good friend makes mistakes. Even the best of friends. So if we weren’t a good friend in the past, maybe we can change that.  It starts by learning, I think.  How?

It may be easy to pass a stranger without saying hello.  But would you pass a friend and be so rude? Did you know that ospreys mate for life?  Did you know that 99% of their diet is fish and they don’t even get tired of it?  Don’t tell Digby because he will think that he can live on pancakes.  Did you know that ospreys are found all over the world?  Have you seen one?  Now that you know about him, maybe it is time that you need a new friend.  And maybe it is time we treat all of our friends just a little better.

-Sheriff Peanut Butter Brickle

We have some special things going on this week! Tonight, Girl Person will be accepting an award from Pet Age Magazine, The Women Of Influence Award.  Then tomorrow, stay tuned to our Facebook page as Boy Person and Girl Person report LIVE from the Global Pet Expo in Orlando, Florida!