Monday, December 17, 2018

Milliron Monday: Country Christmas 12 17 18

Abbott "Pete" Smith, D.V.M.
June 16, 1938 - February 22, 2010

Welcome to Milliron Monday where every Monday we celebrate the legacy of Pete Smith, D.V.M., and  Milliron: Abbott “Pete” Smith, D.V.M. The Biography (Monday Creek Publishing 2017). A graduate of Colorado State University and a well-known veterinarian in southeast, Ohio, Dr. Smith continues to motivate and inspire. 

This Christmas season, as we near the end of the calendar year, we reflect on the past year and the adventures, hurdles, triumphs, and blessings. As I reflect, I think about Dr. Smith, and how his life (family, friends, and clients) has enriched my life/career. If I could meet Dr. Smith this morning, it would be a thrill to talk with him about writing. A prolific writer, he would have written his own biography (and intended to do so) - more like a James Herriot type, instead of my insights and interviews. I can hear Dr. Smith now, in his bonafide Dr. Smith voice, "Now, Gina, I would write it this way...".

As a country veterinarian, Dr. Smith was a Country Christmas, usually called away from the family celebrations to save an animal with a life-threatening injury or illness. After all, giving yourself at a moments notice to save a life is what Christmas is all about - and Christmas was all year.

Like James Herriot, Dr. Smith had plenty of stories to tell of holiday animal maladies that required immediate attention. Herriot wrote of one such adventure in The Christmas Day Kitten. Here is the short version... 

So begins The Christmas Day Kitten, another true story from James Herriot's rich experience as a country vet. As always, the tale includes a vivid group of characters on two legs and four: Mrs. Pickering and her three stately Basset hounds, James himself, and Debbie, the self-possessed stray cat who makes a special contribution to Christmas at the Pickering house. This is one of James Herriot's own favorite stories, and it is sure to be one of yours.

How many Christmas kittens did Dr. Smith encounter? We will never know, but we can safely say that there was more than a dozen - and dogs, horses, etc. We will celebrate a Country Christmas along with the Smith family in remembrance of Dr. Smith, his clients, and his many years of dedication to the Ohio Valley that he loved.


Read more in Pete's biography Milliron.
Share your stories and photos of Dr. Smith. 
Email to mondaycreekpublishing@gmail.com 
Through captivating, powerful, and emotional anecdotes, we celebrate the life of Dr. Abbott P. Smith. His biography takes the reader from smiles to laughter to empathy and tears. Dr. Smith gave us compelling lessons learned from animals; the role animals play in the human condition, the joy of loving an animal, and the awe of their spirituality. A tender and profound look into the life of a skilled veterinarian.

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