Happy Autumn, My Friend!
Kevin and I have been dogsitting one of our granddogs, Stella, for almost three weeks. Our stint will be up this weekend when Teddy, Stella’s “dad,” will be home from a nice long vacation. Though we had a dog many years ago before we had kids, it’s been a while since we’ve been in the business of taking care of a pet day in and day out. I’ve taken many more walks lately, and there is a lot more hair in my house, but it’s been a sweet time with Stella. She’s reminded me of some things I always knew were important.
- Take a lot of naps. Yes, please! Being a lover of “rest,” I can relate to Stella’s desire to snooze away the day. Practically speaking, a human can’t do that unless you’re a relatively new human. Being an adult, you can’t get away with that much sleeping, but I might like to try!
- Stop and smell the roses along the way. Smell the roses, smell the grass, smell the trees, smell the tiny turtle on the sidewalk, smell EVERYTHING! OK, maybe being a human, I don’t need to be smelling all of these things, but Stella follows her curiosity ad nauseum sometimes! I equate her sniffing constantly to a human’s googling. She is noticing everything around her and taking it all in. I have noticed so many things about our neighborhood in the past few weeks since I walk with Stella. Kevin and I take a fast-paced walk in the mornings, but with Stella, it’s sniff-sniff-sniff-walk-sniff-sniff-walk-walk-sniff-sniff-sniff-sniff. I may not get my heart rate up, but I enjoy looking at nature’s beautiful things.
- Shower the people you love with love. I’ve always loved that expression and that song. I’ll admit, I was nervous when we first got Stella. Of my three granddogs, she’s the least impressed with me. I feared she’d miss Teddy so much and look at me like, “Get lost, lady! You’re not the boss of me!” Although I think she still likes Kevin better, she seems happy to see me when I walk into the house after being out. She’s at my feet as I write this, making a soft pillow for my toes. Wouldn’t it be nice if we would all show the people we love how much we love them? Maybe licking their faces isn’t the way to do it, but you can think of something; I know you can.
- Need a hug? Ask for one! – Every now and then, Stella will appear from her most recent nap, come up and lean on me. I’ll bend over, scratch her ears, or stroke her head, and she looks at me with those doggy eyes! Is there anyone who can resist doggy eyes?? It’s harder to ask for that affection when you’re a human. And going up to another person and leaning on them can end all kinds of badly. Maybe if we all just were on the lookout for someone who looks like they need a scratch behind the ears—I mean—a hug, we’d have happier people around us.
- Enjoy your treats. I think the word that Stella knows and loves more than all other human words is “treat.” “Stella, do you want a treat?” Her ears perk up faster than you can say, “Milk bone.” In fact, I think she knows I just wrote the word “treat” right now. I try not to overindulge her, but I am her grandmother, and that’s what we’re known for. She takes her treat to a particular place on the floor and enjoys it immensely. We all need a treat now and then.
Thank you, Stella, for all the love and hair you gave me these last three weeks. You’ve given me and my vacuum a workout. You’re a good girl.
If you’re like me and don’t typically have furry ears to scratch at your house, I hope you have some human ears nearby that you can love on.
Next week, I’ll be visiting another granddog, along with some fine humans, in California! I won’t write to you next week. I’ll write you again on October 10.
Written with love – – – Patti XOXO
“All his life he tried to be a good person.
Many times, however, he failed.
For after all, he was only human.
He wasn’t a dog.”
– Charles M Schulz