Walking three dogs is a heck of a lot harder than walking two.  I used to think 2 dogs were troublesome to steer.  But now I know.  Three is simply borderline insanity.

This afternoon, while on our walk, a woman stopped me and asked how much I charge.  Well…. since my “hookin” days are over….

I asked her  “Charge for what?”

“Dog walking.  Aren’t you the dog walker?”

To which I responded, “These are my dogs.  I am walking them, so technically, I am the walker.  But none of them have a red cent… so I don’t charge them a thing.”   She waved her hand dismissively as she scurried away… muttering something about a crazy woman….

Oh well. More importantly….

There is a lot to be learned from our friends who are dogs.

They have a gazillion life lessons to teach us.  Golden Retrievers are especially adept at this…. but all dogs are pretty good, I’ll tell you.

Some general observances….

Wash your own dish when you a through eating.
Take naps.
If someone you like walks into the room, show them just how happy you are to see them.
On the other hand, if somebody bigger than you is peeing… get the heck out of the way.

Today, our dogs reminded me that “time” is a human device.  We labeled it, we conjured up its fragments of minutes and years and seconds and hours.  We live by its markers and measures.

All other beings follow their internal clocks.    Yes, this morning, at 5:27, the “girls” were awake and ready to go out.   The human clock followed the Daylight Savings Rules and “fell back” over night.  But to the dogs, time remained exactly the same.

This would would have been all fine and good… but I stayed up late watching reruns of Murder, She Wrote, to whittle away those extra bunch of minutes.  (I love the folks in Cabot Cove.  They have lots of Golden Retrievers there.)

But, yes.  Three dogs, we do have… three different styles of lesson giving.

From Maxine, the Queen Terrier of the house:  Set boundaries.  That way, others don’t walk all over you.  Bark just a bit… if your personal space is encroached.  Have a backbone.  Good lesson.

From Frances, the Saint.  Patience and gentleness do not go unnoticed.  Live life with those two devices, and you have set your standards of integrity and fairness at a very high place.  This is commendable.  Another good lesson.

From Ollie, the Court Jester.  Have fun.  Chase your tail. Forget about it.  Have fun.  Chase your tale.  Forget about it.  Heyyyyy…Have fun.  “HEY…. who put that tail back there???  I’m chasing it.  Wooo Hooooo!”  Forget about it.

Oh so many great things to learn from them.  But one of the best of all… might be….what they show us day in and day out.

“The heart has reasons that reason does not understand.”
-Jacques Benigne Bossuel (dog lover and keeper…. circa 1652 AD)