SPUD LIFE

MELISSA MCMAHON

My service dog healed my heart and mind. He helped me laugh and soothed me to sleep with his melodic snoring. When he passed, I felt like I lost part of my soul.

My spouse found me another bulldog (my first dog’s cousin) who is in service training, and we’ve added another bulldog for good measure. My two boys make me laugh and keep me busy, so I dedicated this piece to them. They’re the yin and yang in my life, and we all need balance. The dogs are dreaming (their snoring is music to my ears, soothing me like a lullaby). Hopefully, my piece makes someone laugh. Sometimes that’s what we desperately need. A little joy and a lot more happy memories.

I also included my other favorite things post-deployment: driving race cars and playing the guitar and ukulele.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

MELISSA MCMAHON

Las Vegas, Nevada

U.S. Air Force Veteran

Melissa is from a third-generation military family and she enlisted as a military nurse to fulfill a higher calling to help those who fight for freedom every day. In the service, there were a lot of ups and downs (sometimes more downs) but through Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), she’s found more people like her.

She thoroughly enjoys her “Art and Chat” WWP Peer Support Group where she’s recently been working on sketching and painting with watercolors. She’s also attended WWP Project Odyssey and other retreats, making lifelong friends who support each other and laugh together. She finds that WWP has helped her leave the house more often and participate in more activities even outside of veteran circles.