What’s going on out there? 
Oh yeah! 
I’ve got my eye on the world.
The other day i was hanging out on the back porch perusing my kingdom when i was struck with the sudden notion to take a stroll. And why not, i ask, why not? It is easy to stay still, but what good are my stories if i only have one tale to tell.
As you may well recall, i get to go for a walk every day, but those outings are structured, guided jaunts around the neighborhood or on the trail and often leave me bewildered and confused (don’t tell mom please). Between the “c’mon phil’s” when i suddenly stand stock still to sniff a scent, or the “slow down phil’s” when i fly forward to feel the wind flow through my ear fur, i sometimes don’t know if i am meant to be coming or going…or coming and going quickly…or coming and going slowly. What is a dog to do? How is a dog to know? Anyway, on this particular day, i was hanging out on the back porch perusing my kingdom when i was struck with the sudden notion to take a stroll.
I am a giant puppy, and one heck of a lucky boy because the world is forever at my feet. All four of them. The whole world. I don’t have to sit complacently in a kennel all day, and i don’t have to pace patiently in a pen, i am allowed to hang out on the porch whenever i want. The critter population in our neck of the woods prevents us from installing a doggy-door, especially one large enough to accommodate this big bod, so for me to move from house to porch requires a human hand to open the door and let me come in…or go out…or come in…or go out…or in…or out…or in…or out…in…out…in…out. Not to worry, my people don’t mind at all, no matter how many times i make the trip, there is never a bone of contention, i swear!
So, there i was, hanging out on the back porch perusing my kingdom when i was struck with the sudden notion to take a stroll. I’m not sure if i was inspired by a sight off in the distance or a smell wafting past my giant puppy nose, but up i got and off i went.
My meanderings usually incite some sort of silliness. If the calling to go comes from my right, i bumble down the steps, move along the flower beds, lift my leg to a shrub, sniff a flower, eye up a butterfly in the warm weather, eat some snow in the cold weather, saunter around a tree, walk past the pile of wood (see Give or Take for more on this part of my journey), bark at a random anything, and work my way over to the natural spring that runs through our property. My life is a dog’s life.
If the calling to go comes from the left, i lumber into the grass, glimpse about the pachysandra, inspect the kayaks, survey the fire pit, and work my way over to the natural spring that runs through our property. My life is a dog’s life.
These first parts of my promenades can last anywhere from five minutes to the better part of a dog’s day depending on how i feel and what i find. If the neighbors are out in their garden, i may watch them a while. If the mice are building a nest in the wood pile, i may peek at their progress. If the geese are commuting, i may gaze at the ganders. I never leave the porch with a plan, but i always find fun once i am on my way.
After an occasional detour, i continue my parade. Ah the life of a dog.
There is a natural stream that runs through our property, and when my travels bring me to its bank…well, it is like trying to talk a dog off a meat wagon. I cannot be dragged away.
Like much of what i do, i go in head first with all the gusto i can gather.
I dive and i dig, i slosh and i slurp, i poke and i prod…i emerge for air and check for intruders. I root and i rout, i till and i tunnel, i bore and i bulldoze…i emerge for air and check for intruders. I uncover, unearth, scoop out and turn over. I am at one with the world around me, and i glory in the moment of me.
Then i go home…where someone stands ready to open the door, welcome my mass, and take in the appalling untidiness of a silt-soaked-one-hundred-and-thirty-pound-giant-puppy dripping from head to tail with mud…and water…and twigs, leaves, or general filth. My life is a good life.
The other day i was hanging out on the back porch perusing my kingdom when i was struck with the sudden notion to take a stroll…and i did… and it was everything i hoped for, nothing i expected, exactly what i needed.
Wanderlust.
It is easy to sit on the porch of life and watch neighbors, mice and geese go about the world. It is safe to stay in the confines of the familiar and fantasize about what is beyond the bend. But life isn’t always about what is safe and easy. Life is about looking into the unknown, taking a step off the porch, and diving into the natural stream that might be right in your own backyard.
So go ahead, get out there and get dirty.
I double dog dare you.
i’m a dog, i love life, and i have flaws. i’m perfect. imperfect. Just. Like. You.