There is a lot you can learn from a puppy. And our boy Lew is ALL puppy. He makes our 15th, all told. If it sounds like a lot, it is. First, we got Bess, a Golden Retriever pup. Our first dog together. That was back in 1994. We did not have another puppy until 2005. Frances came into our lives. Walked right in through the front door, with 13 puppies in her womb. Quickly, our tally was up to 14. We took another break from puppy rearing, until now. 2017. Lewey. Lew. Lewis. Little Lew. Our boy.
Of course, puppies are a lot of work. That is all a part of the deal. They are, in part….. little pee factories. Our tiny guy only weighs 1.9 pounds. But I am sure he pees out that much every day. We spend a lot of time going outside, coming back in….peeing on the floor. Going out side again, coming back in…. peeing on the floor. Again.
Luckily, I own stock in Bounty Paper Towels.
Regardless. A puppy can be a great delight. A source of elation. Every time you turn around. And if you watch them closely enough, you can learn some incredible life lessons.
If you have no plans for getting a pup, I’ll share those lessons here.
Play.
It makes no difference where you are standing, what you are doing, or who might be around…. it is always good to play. Chase your tail, spring into the air, bite a leaf. It makes no matter. Just find the happiness is playing where you stand.
Grow.
Every minute. Grow. Lewey is growing in all ways. Physically, mentally, emotionally. We can take a page from this. He notices every little thing and seems to make a mental note. Lewey is pretty smart that way. He learns pretty quickly not to make the same mistake twice. (Just for the record… peeing on the floor is not a mistake in his book.)
It is okay to ask for help.
Lew tries very hard to scale the back steps. His front paws make it up to the top of the step just fine. But then there is the business of getting the back end to follow. So when all else fails, he turns his little head, looks me right in the eye, and says… “Hey. A little help here.” We humans sometimes have a hard time asking for help. But truly, we are all here to help one another. It is okay to ask. And of course, even better to be the one to lift somebody’s butt up onto the next step.
Everything is new and wondrous. Sometimes scary.
This goes right along with the rule about growing. Lewey finds everything to be wildly exciting and interesting. It is a big world, and it needs to be explored. He acts like he’s found the sunken treasure of the San Jose with every leaf he finds. We too, could look at things with inspired interest. Notice. It is all different in each moment that passes.
Love.
Put yourself into the arms of others. Roll over and ask for a belly rub. Love them unconditionally, and be free with giving lots of love right back. Snuggles and kisses are good.
The joy of life is simple.
He revels in every little thing. A puppy is the epitome of living right in the moment. They are like little Buddhist Monks is a tiny body with a dog suit on. All moments are filled with joy and exuberance. There is a skip in each step. Each meal is the most amazing. And every experience is the greatest thing to ever happen in that puppy’s world.
Yes, the lessons are simple but important ones.
Puppies truly know the joy of being alive. May we know it too.
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“Everything you can imagine is real.”
― Pablo Picasso
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“Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.”
― Dr. Seuss
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“Some infinities are bigger than other infinities.”
― John Green, The Fault in Our Stars
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