Losing a pet is never easy and when Liz Weber’s dog Rufus begins showing signs of old age and ill health she knows that sooner or later she will have to face the fact that she may lose him. Memory Card Full is a memoir of Liz’s life before, during, and after losing her Rufus. As any pet owner knows our pets are a constant in our lives and they love us no matter what and with Liz going through some issues in her own life Rufus was the one thing she could always depend on. Needless to say the loss of a pet makes for an emotional story.
Liz had a pretty busy life with working in a bar, as a part time model, and at a lawyers office. Her dream is to become a writer but in the meantime she has to do whatever she can to pay the bills although she has very supportive parents who help her out if she really needs it. Still Liz feels stuck in her life. She can’t seem to move forward though and it’s driving her crazy. So when Rufus starts to show signs of something being wrong Liz is concerned about being able to pay the bills but will do what it takes to get Rufus help. As Rufus gets worse Liz has to make one of the hardest decisions of her life and put her boy down. Afterwards even though she continues to work her emotional state seems to spiral downwards. As time goes on though Liz decides to take a writing class, attend a conference, and even start dating. Liz began to feel as though having Rufus had kept her from really living her own life and she knows that finally she needs to let go of her grief and move on.
I have mixed feelings on this memoir but I think really the reason is that all of us have different ways of dealing with loss and our feelings on things. There were many decisions and thoughts that Liz had that I disagreed with but again each person does things or feels things their own way and can’t be judged on that. I lost Buddy four years ago and the pain is still there for me and I’m not always positive I’ve moved on from it despite having the wonderful Sammy to love. The raw emotion of having to put her dog down really hit me hard as the anniversary of losing Buddy passed just a few weeks ago so that made some parts of this memoir really difficult for me. All in all I enjoyed reading Liz’s memoir. It was a fun read in a lot of parts because to me she lives a fairly exciting life that I never will but other than the shared experience of losing our pets I couldn’t really connect as I would have liked to which I’m positive is due to the differences in our lifestyles and our thoughts on some things. Despite that Liz seems like a really great and caring person and hopefully the writing of this memoir was one more way for her to heal in her own life.
Recommended for those who enjoy memoirs!
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Darlene, thank you for sharing your honest thoughts about this memoir. I remember your sweet Buddy, and I have lost pets, too. It is certainly difficult.
Enjoy your reading this week! The cooler weather entices me to read more, particularly in the longer evenings.
Darlene, thank you so much for taking the time to read and offer your thoughts on my work. Losing a pet runs deep, and I appreciate your care and effort in trying to connect to my process. Furthermore, I’m terribly sorry for your loss. Buddy looks like a total character and a love! I have a new dog, Sadie, and we thank you (and Sammy) the best!
xo
-Liz
Grief IS such an individual thing. The pain is similar between people I think, but the way we deal with that pain is very different.
I’m glad that you enjoyed this memoir even though you didn’t connect with the author in all that many ways. Thanks for being a part of the tour!