I work in the Information Technology Department at Webster University's main campus,in Saint Louis, MO. During the early months of the Global Pandemic, I worked many long hours and did not have as much time, for relaxing, as I normally would. One Friday evening, after the initial months of helping everyone transition to working remotely, from home, I was relaxing and Cooper joined me, resting on the blanket I had over my legs, and I had donned my slippers. He took the opportunity to soak up the fact that his mom was with him and that gaze is one that I know very well. I have been blessed, and fortunate, to be Cooper's pet parent, or mother, for more than a decade and we have an unspoken bond and understanding of one another. Whenever I work long hours, or am sick, he always knows that something is different about our rhythm, and he looks at me, compassionately, as if to say, "I understand."