Rain still dripped from the roof this morning, melting out of the sky. But I couldn't be totally heartless, and Lord knows I'm in no danger of melting myself, so I bundled up and took my critters for their walk to the curve.
I think our little one-day vacation made them appreciate our morning adventure a little bit more. Day before yesterday, Max didn't go all the way to the curve...he just sat on the rise above it and waited for me. And Frankie didn't go with us at all - just wandered a dozen yards or so down the road and squawked until we returned!
But this morning they were both so excited, so full of energy! These days Max trots and I jog beside him (he's a big dog!), but this morning he stayed ahead of me, like he's pacing me. I'm going to start calling him Coach Max.
Frankie kept up with us and, oh, lordy! - you'd think he hadn't eaten in a week the way he went after the weeds at the curve. He was chirping and twirping and zipping back and forth.
There was a light mist falling, soft, like powdered sugar sifted on a funnel cake...not even enough to get me wet. I could feel the mud sticking to my shoes, though. Our caliche road drains pretty well, but dirt is dirt. And wet dirt is mud. Near our house the dirt has worn down to rock, and by the time I stepped into the house, the wet rock had washed the mud from my shoes!
I love balance and circles.
I worry about Max sometimes. A guinea is a little bit of company, but Frankie can't take Charly's place, and I know Max misses his Charly-dog something awful. He spends a lot of his time napping in the dog house. Frankie is the one who meets us at the top of the walk when we get home each afternoon and escorts us back down to the house. Sometimes Max is waiting on his porch-bed. Most times he's not.
But when we go for our walks, he grins. He perks up, sniffs spots on the road, on bushes. He lifts his leg and pees, marking his territory, and lies down in mud puddles, one of his favorite of favorite things to do, funny dog, even when it's cold outside. He's learning one of those lessons we all have to learn sooner or later - that loss hurts and takes time to heal, but little by little we can still find joy in our lives. We can go on living.
We haven't found the answer to the puppy question yet. Max and Frankie both just wandered up and adopted us, filling empty spots in our lives we didn't even realize we had. Gifts from God, I truly believe. So I guess I'm holding out, keeping an eye on the woods, figuring if we need another dog...or some other critter...the good Lord will lead it here to fill that need.
I'll keep you posted.
