Bringing a dog into your life is the beginning of a journey. It’s an expedition that will bring you more love and devotion than you’ve ever known, but it will sometimes test your patience and courage. If you allow, years with a dog will teach you many things. You’ll learn about yourself, life, and pure love. You’ll come away changed forever. A canine soul cannot touch another without forever leaving its mark.
On this trip, you’ll learn about savoring life's simple pleasures. Snooze in the sun. Trounce through puddles. Chase flower petals as they scuttle in the spring breeze and frolic with autumn leaves. Cavort through snow and enjoy a good slide. Never pass up a good scratch or tasty bites. All of these will bring joy if you’re open to them.
Your dog will teach you to truly experience every element. No rock, leaf, or log should go unexamined. No rustling bush should be overlooked. The air is to be more than inhaled; it should be pondered and the valuable information processed. You’ll become a better naturalist, having been taught by an expert in the field. Too often, we humans walk from point A to point B on autopilot, our goal being to get to the end rather than enjoy the route. We miss the details: the sparkling spiderweb stretched between the bushes, the bluejay feather spinning on the ground, the squirrel watching from above. Once we walk as a dog does, we discover a whole new world. We stop. We browse the landscape. We kick through leaves, peek in tree holes, really look all around. We learn what any dog knows: nature has created a marvelously complex world that’s full of surprises, that each season brings ever changing wonders, that each day has an essence all its own. You’ll be more attuned to the world around you. You’ll find yourself watching. You’ll notice little things like an insect on a light fixture or crawling across the floor. You’ll stop to watch the swirling dance of windblown leaves and fluffy snowflakes. Sniffing the air after a rain will become second nature. Your dog will encourage you to avoid letting life's important details slip by.
You’ll likely find yourself doing things your dog-less friends won’t understand. You may spend time online or going from store to store looking for the exact brand of food or treats your companion must have. You’ll likely buy doggy birthday and Christmas presents and snap lots of pictures of your furry kid. You may roll in the snow, wrestle with toys, bounce balls till your eyes cross, or run around the house trailing your bathrobe belt with a puppy in hot pursuit. You’ll worry in the vet’s office when illness or injury takes you there. All done in the name of love.
Your house will become littered and hairy. You’ll become a lint roller expert. You’ll pick up toys countless times. You’ll clean up tracked-in dirt and the accidents from your floors. You may find dog biscuits in your pocket or purse. It’s likely you’ll feel the need to explain why old socks adorn your living room floor, but that’s okay because your dog loves an impromptu game of tug.
You will experience pure love. Your dog will give you the steadfast, undying kind that says, "It doesn't matter where we are, what we do, or how life treats us, as long as we’re together." Respect this always. It’s the most precious gift any living soul can give another. You won’t find it often among the human race. In addition, you’ll learn humility. The look in your dog's eyes exclaim joy and love at just being in your presence. Your dog doesn’t see a flawed human who can be cross, stubborn, moody, or rude. Your dog sees only his or her wonderful companion. Or, perhaps, your dog sees those things and dismisses them as mere human foibles, not worth considering, then choses to love anyway.
This journey is not without pain. Like all paths of true love, pain is part of loving. For as surely as the sun sets, one day your loving companion will follow a trail you cannot yet go down. You will have to find the strength and love to let them go. A dog's time on earth is far too short, especially for those of us that love them. They’re loaned to us, really, for just a while. During this brief time, they’re generous enough to give us all their love, every bit of their spirit and heart, and unsurpassed loyalty. Until, one day, there is nothing left. The dog, that only yesterday was a puppy, is old and frail, wanting to do nothing more than sleep in the sun. The young pup of boundless energy now wakes up stiff and lame, the muzzle gone gray. We always knew this journey would end. We knew when we gave our hearts they would be broken. But we had to give our hearts, for it’s all they ask in return. When the time comes, when the road curves ahead to a place we cannot see, we give one final gift when let them run on ahead, young and whole once more. We’ll likely murmur something like, “I love you, Baby. Goodbye, my good dog, until our journey comes full circle and our paths cross again.”
When the journey is done, if you paid attention and learned well, you won’t be just a better person, but the person your dog always knew you to be--the one he or she was proud to call beloved friend.
Comments