Play with abandon!

 

Recently, I was stuck inside more than usual.  We had a blizzard.  Finally. Yahoo.  Amen and all that jazz.  Trust me we really needed it.  Even I felt the snowbanks were looking disgusting.  And to all you humans who don’t clean up after your dogs…there is a special hell waiting for you come Spring!  Heard the town is considering giving you all some rubber gloves and a small spatula around April 30…and you can imagine the rest of the details yourself.  Owner…..keep up the good work.  However, you have  screwed up a couple times and I think there may be a right  handed glove out there with the first few letters of your name etched on the palm.  This is warning number one.  Curly haired never misses an opportunity to clean up after me if he’s alone, but when he’s with you he cracks me up.  He hands you a  bag as if you are about to do brain  surgery.  He  utters one word curtly …BAG?  What this means, dear owner, is get cracking, clean it up. I’m waiting for you to respond  “No, no bag thanks,…I much prefer to pick up dog shit with my bare hands.”   Next time you hear me snorting in my sleep  you will know why; I think it is one of my favourite recurring dreams.

Anyway, I was just hanging out and came across the perfect expression to describe how we dogs live our lives.   Since I’ve already let you in on the fact that we do laugh, you won’t find it out of place in this quotation.  If everyone took this to heart the world would be a happier and better place.  Reading someone else’s blog led me to this artist/writer from Oregon, Mary  Anne Radmacher.  Here is what she said and I try to be true to it every day.

Live with intention.  Walk to the edge.  Listen hard.  Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret.  Appreciate your friends. Continue to learn.  Do what you love.  Live as if this is all there is.

What more can be said about that?  I have run to the edge  many times and have nearly fallen over so maybe  she should say run to within five feet of the edge, especially dogs.  We live every moment with abandon.  When we  are out with our buds we put so much intention into  having a good time and sniffing so thoroughly that we forget to listen and  then sometimes  get  a little carried away. We don’t want to fall off a cliff but we so love running wild and free that edges come upon us with little warning.  And, isn’t this all there is?  (for the moment anyway.)

By the way, a heartfelt bark  to every single snow shoveller in the town of Telluride.  Holy cow.  Thursday night I had to get up for a drink of water and took a peek out our front window.  It was 3 a.m The houses across the street were no longer visible.  Also did a double check that owner had all the windows closed on our vehicle  (she had left one open a bit earlier in the day and some snow got inside…but curly haired isn’t here to know, so what’s the big deal, eh?) She seems to have trouble pushing the right buttons that operate our windows…she’s an old-fashioned “crank the window up woman” I guess…the poor thing!    Anyway, as I mentioned I could not see across the street.  Quietly I trudged back to my quilt and curled up and slept some more.  Granted this is a very long introduction to a simple statement but the scene needed to be set.  On our constitutional the next morning we walked  through snow up to the top of Don’s back. Fortunately he was in my pink coat so we could easily locate him if necessary under the drifts.  Owner stopped to  speak to some snow shovellers.    They had been up shovelling out driveways and sidewalks since TWO IN THE MORNING.  They had been shovelling for FIVE HOURS ALREADY, through the worst of the storm.  She thanked them for their hard work and dedication and Don and I bobbed our heads at them and  wagged our tails to let them know we appreciated it too.  It is tough walking through chest deep snow! Pretty but tough.  Where do these guys sleep? Surely they didn’t have to drive into town in the middle of a raging blizzard to shovel snow so I could get around more easily.  Could be.  You guys rock!

Today Don and I are not arguing about going for a big walk, although we want one.   We both came in and curled up by the pretend fireplace.  Expecting lots of dynamite explosions today as those other tough dudes keep avalanches away from our ski runs.   Avalanches are on my mind as we have a gabled section on our  roof and every once in a while a monster pile of snow slides off.  It scares me every time!

Enjoy your day wherever you are. You could be on a patio watching falling flakes  of your big blizzard.  Some friends are in Texas sitting at Starbucks  and once again enjoying the warm temperatures.  One fab friend is down in Roatan, Honduras sitting with her feet in the water and the sun on her shoulders.  Another is in the deep South helping her mom recuperate from a terrible bout with pneumonia. Curly-haired is on a whirlwind trip to Colombia, where luckily he blends in with the locals so avoids having a body guard. He’s supposed to be on a plane to Australia but that trip is delayed. (I could use a new sheepskin curly haired, Don has eaten a chunk of  my  old one). Everyone is everywhere. May you all be living life a few feet from the edge (it is the female side of me that wants you to keep your toes from dangling over), practicing wellness, laughing, playing with abandon and living as if this is all there is, in case it is.  See ya later.