Everyday, I take my dogs for a walk behind the nearby elementary school. Sometimes I’m not really in the mood for a walk, but the dogs really need it and enjoy it, so I make myself go. Lately, I’ve been using the dog walk as a way to practice getting out of my own head and appreciating my surroundings. I’ve been making friends with all the dogs along the way by stopping and paying attention to them, scratching their heads and talking to them. Over the last couple of months, the “dogs of morning walk” as I call them have now become very excited to see me. I can see their tails wagging behind their fences from quite a distance! One day last week, I was really distracted and feeling frustrated with a project, and I went out to take the dogs. About half way across the field, I realized that I was walking with my gaze down, totally in my own head, completely oblivious to my doggie friends. I stopped when I realized I’d forgotten them and turned around. As soon as I turned, I saw two big pit-bull mix dogs watching me intently. They were thinking, “Denied!” and then “Hey, I think she is coming back, oh man here she comes!” Tails wagging, feet up on the fence, they were so happy that I finally remembered to pay attention to them.
Another dog I’ve grown to like is a little super-hyper Jack Russell. He goes completely berserk when he sees me and runs up and down along his fence. When I try to reach over to pet him, he does these 3 foot-high standing high jumps, making it virtually impossible for me to make contact. I’d thought about giving up on him, as he never really lets me pet him. He just can’t relax. But I’ve kept at it, hoping he gets used to me. I feel a certain connection to him, because I figure he feels they way I do after too much iced tea and back bending ;-). I suppose that before I found yoga, I might have been like a Jack Russell on Red Bull. I’d like to think that I’ve moved up a little. Hopefully now I’m more like a crazy Border Collie.
The family went with me on the dog walk the other day, and Taz ran off to play on the playground equipment. Running from the merry-go-round to the monkey bars and back, she was not so unlike that Jack Russell. She is always in motion going full-throttle. Slim, Hermoine, and I made it all the way across the field when we looked back to see Taz just standing motionless in the middle of the field looking up into a tree. We couldn’t figure out what she was doing. Was she looking at a bird, or scared of a wasp, or what? We started calling her and she wouldn’t respond. Then as we got closer, she started waving us all over. We kept calling to her, “what is it?”
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5 comments:
I loved your post. I can so picture those little pups waiting for you to stop to say hello. That is so sweet. As you know I kinda have a soft spot for animals. There is a little neighbor cat named Lemon that absolutely loves Streak. He'll see us from a distance and come running. At first I thought he was being territorial and then we were told Lemon LOVES dogs. Other cats, not so much. It is such a delight for us when Lemon is outside. We love him, too.
Thanks for your kind words! That's so funny, a cat that runs to play with dogs! When I was growing up my folks got my brother and I a kitten and a puppy at the same time. We've got pictures of the two of them taking naps in the sun together. Our animals give us so much love. When I've been really down, I've even felt a sense of hope and support from my dogs.
Ahhh, cute doggies. We have that too. We usually go for dog walks down a street where a lot of dogs are outside at all times. They also bark at my mom when she goes on her own walks there. Mom swears that at one of the houses, where they have two dogs, a smaller one and a big one, the small dog barks at her and the big dog barks at the small dog to shut up.
My kids used to stop and admire nature in its beauty, but they are teenage boys now, so... need I say more?
Nice blog, and thanks for stopping by.
I love your blog, almost as much as yoga class, but without the need for ibuprofen afterward :) I learn things from my dogs all the time. For instance, sharing toys with a friend is way more fun than playing with them by yourself! See you Wednesday!
Thanks MB! Actually you can combine reading my blog and yoga at the same time... Just put one foot up on the desk, and the other foot on the chair... pull belly in, lengthen through the spine, and maybe even forward fold over the keyboard! ha.ha. I'm doing it right now! ha.
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