Some Moments are More Precious than Others

Some Moments are More Precious than Others

 

I am so happy there were no hidden cameras in my yard this morning for had the Youtube types gotten a look at a day in my life, I am certain that it would have shown up on America's Funniest Videos.  I was innocently sitting at the computer answering my emails when I glanced into our back yard to see that our three-month old Golden Retriever puppy, Lacey, had something unsavory in her mouth. (Well, it was most savory to her!)  I realized it was a dead lizard.  

 

Being the sanitary dog-mother that I am, I quickly got up to take it away from her.  As I struggled to pry it out of her mouth, I noticed that our cats had left a half-eaten rat nearby, on the same door mat where Lacey was enjoying the lizard.  I instantly saw that I had a multitasking challenge in front of me.  If I were not sufficiently stealthful, the puppy would grab that rat and take off.  I maneuvered in such a way as to try to block her view of it as I pried open her locked jaw.  Finally, I got the dead lizard away from the her, but Lacey was faster than lightening and delightedly grabbed the gross half-eaten rat and took off running. I gave chase. 

 

Around the yard we went, her little puppy legs racing ahead of me. "Lacey drop that.  Lacey, no no!"  After a few circles around the yard we were back by the house. She darted into my office and under the coffee table.  I quickly moved the table to expose her and she instantly took off again.  "Lacey no! That's bad! Drop it!"  All that fell on deaf ears; around the yard we went again, big me chasing the racing puppy, forbidden treasure secured in her mouth.

 

Finally I thought I had her cornered under a bench near the planter.  I got closer, sure that I could grab her, when she sensed my presence, she scooted far into the planter behind a big thorny rose bush.  I climbed in after her and continued, "Lacey drop that!"  All I could see of the rat was part of its tail hanging out of her mouth. Yikes!  I crept further into the flowers and bent low trying to avoid the thorns. I got hold of her muzzle.  It took all my strength to work open her jaw so the rat would fall out. Finally it did!  I grabbed up the thirty pound puppy before she seized the bloody thing again.

 

I clamored out of the planter, placed her in the house and got a shovel.  While I carried the rat to the trash barrel I began to laugh out loud.   How funny was that?  And then I sneaked a look around the yard to be sure that no hidden cameras had caught a scene from my actual life with puppy!  I let Lacey out of the house and hugged her close as I thought, what a little devil you are!  I smiled to realize I had just captured another memorable moment. It might not have been a precious one, but it was pretty funny.

 

Living with two mature dogs, Ken and I gave a lot of thought to the pros and cons of taking on a puppy before we committed to Lacey.  However, as we spend our evenings enjoying the entertainment of our three dogs  wrestling  and chasing each other, we know we made a good decision. It a lot of fun, but it is also a big challenge. Lacey loves to drag the long length of toilet paper as far as it will go down the hall. She loves to chase the cats, dig up the yard, and of course she wants to chew everything up.

 

Across the past few decades there are some whom I encounter  who seem a bit suspicious about why I seem so happy. Well, one of my secrets is the pleasure and love that I receive from my dogs. My new shirt says, "My therapist has a wagging tail!"  Perhaps that is not so far from the truth. They warm my heart in ways that I cannot explain.  They power walk with me, nuzzle against me, sleep by my side, wag themselves silly greeting me, and ride around in the car with me. They simply bring me joy. Ken and I know that this crazy puppy stage is short-lived so we are reveling in it while it lasts. Oh dear, I hear Ken calling, "Donna, the puppy has a mouse in her mouth!"....  As I run to deal with this puppy moment, preparing for another chase, I steal a glance around the yard, still checking that there are no hidden cameras!  I would love to hear about your secret tool for joyful living.