While we are in the midst of the dog days of summer, I have been thinking about the dogs in my life. I have three: our bouncing beagle Belle, and my two rescued granddogs, Turner and Cole. I include Turner and Cole because my husband and I do a lot of puppysitting so we spend a fair amount of time with them. Time spent with dogs means lessons learned, and I have learned something from each of these special creatures.
Cole is a very energetic four-year-old Akita/Shepherd mix. My son adopted him from a shelter when he was about a year and a half old. Cole’s energy level hasn’t diminished a bit since his puppy days. He has a certain zest for life that is evident when you put him on a leash and he pulls you out of the house. It’s always a pleasure when Cole takes you for a walk!
Recently, I had the delight of accompanying Cole to the groomer’s. He bounded for the car and sat in the backseat with his head out the sunroof. Cole loves the wind blowing against his face when he rides in the car. Because my car is smaller, the sunroof works best for him. The road crews always enjoy it when Cole passes by them in my car!
When we arrived at our destination, Cole was beside himself with glee and could not wait to get out of the car. I somehow managed to wiggle out with him still on the leash as he pulled me in the direction of people. Cole wanted to greet everyone and tell them just how happy he was to be alive!
Once inside, Cole jumped up to be face to face with the groomer and tell her personally how happy he was to see her. The tail was wagging fiercely at this point. Cole simply could not contain himself. I waved goodbye as he trotted to the back room, groomer in tow.
When I went later that day to retrieve Cole, the groomer gushed that Cole was just so happy to do everything. He greeted everyone who came to the puppy salon, wagged the tail with gusto, and was in general elated with everything. When Cole came out, all clean and smelling wonderfully, he just could not wait to tell me what a great time he had had. He jumped up so that we were face to face and gave me a big, sloppy lick! Then he pulled me outside to the car, ready to stick his head out the sunroof for the glorious ride home!
Cole has taught me to find the joy in everything life has to offer. No need to sweat the small stuff, just bask in the glory of being alive, and make sure the windows (or the sunroof) are open!
This blogpost appeared as my column, "The Empty Nest," in the Frederick News Post on Sunday August 11, 2013.
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