Superstar!

I just had to share a photo of the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration's newest venture: Canine Creations, Cookies from the Cloister.

The dog featured on the front is the beloved canine of the Sisters who live at the Clyde, Mo., monastery.

This is Maggie. And the reason this is such a special photo is because it shows what wonderful things can happen to an animal that receives a second chance.

I met Maggie a few years ago. I volunteer my time with the New Nodaway Humane Society in Maryville, Mo. I was preparing a news release regarding a new program for the shelter and needed a dog for the publicity photo. Maggie (I can't remember what name the shelter staff had given her) had just arrived a few days earlier. Staff told me she was a sweet dog and would be perfect for the photo.

And she was. Absolutely adorable. So adorable, in fact, when my employers, the Benedictine Sisters, saw her photo with the story in the newspaper the next day, they immediately fell in love and adopted her. And look at her today - a superstar!