October days & Quality moments

It's cold outside, 5 °C (41°F).

The sun is shining today and those huge birch trees out in the yard are just golden.

An typical october day!

The grass has stopped growing, which makes Hasi happy. She's the master lawn mower operator and is thankful for winter break.

Hasi's still in bed, sleeping in on this wonderful saturday morning, together with Cleo.

Cleo has been at the animals hospital to remove dental calculus.

She's been sedated and is still not fully recoverd from that. She's not as relaxed as usual and has to go out a few times during the night.

Which means less sleep for us.

Mika on the other hand is as frisky as always and expects us to get up early because he wants to play. He's used to hear the alarm going off at 6:30... and when that doesn't happen on a saturday or sunday, he just don't care.

He starts playing under the bed, making sure at least one of us is getting up.

He is joining me now on the sofa and watching my fingers tapping on the keyboard...

The noise that my fingers make on the keyboard seem to sound funny to him.

It's funny with animals.

I got an e-mail from a friend this week with funny animal photos and a nice little story regarding a dog and a 6 year old boy which was a nice reminder of

Quality Moments

Here's the text...:

A Dog's Purpose? (From a 6-year-old)

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ''I know why.''

Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.

He said,' People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?''
The Six-year-old continued,

' Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.''


Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Be loyal.
Never pretend to be something you're not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

****

We all live quite busy lives.

We are busy with work, with hobbies and socializing with others.

We are often busy with spiritual things and too often with ourselves.

We are often busy thinking of the things we don't have, of past events and chances that we might have missed, we think of the things we want (to happen or to get) and wonder how our future will be.

In the middle of all that thinking we forget to think of the now.

We forget to look at what we have now, of what we are doing right now.

I thought of that when I was driving home from school the other day.

I think most people are not really busy with driving when they are out on the road.

They are either busy with where they are coming from or with where they are going to.

They don't sit IN the car, they are not even aware of it.

They just drive that car in "automatic mode", as I would call it.

We use cell phones in the car, we eat and drink in the car, we dream "away" in the car... just to name a few things we do in the car instead of actually "driving it".

BOOOOOM!

That's what we might hear some day when we "wake up" from that "dreaming away modus", and if we are lucky, we get another chance to remember what is really important and how to recognize it.

Recognize them.

Those Quality Moments.

I've been always fortunate to have animals in my life.

Growing up on a farm teaches you to be "there". It teaches you to care about another entities life and needs. (If you open your eyes to it)

Even now, our whole life resolves around animals.

Its mostly them who "give" those Quality Moments,

who ask for them, maybe with only a look,

or a noise that they make,

a call that they send out.

They help us to find those moments, they help to create them, they help to stop that

"business"

in our heads.

They give that gift, and it's up to us to take it.

It's up to us to JUST sit back for a moment and remember

how to breath,

how to smile!

How to open our eyes and see what is right in front of us.

How to not think of time, past or future.

It's not just pets who help us find those Quality Moments.

It's also wild animals (that might cross right in front of your car, and you'll have to step on the breaks hard in order to safe their lives...)

ARE YOU AWAKE NOW??!!

Children also have that gift to give, those Quality Moments.

They might smile at you or do something funny or stupid to get your attention... just to remind you of that Quality Moment that you can enjoy with them only if you pay attention to the NOW.

You can find those Quality Moments with your partner, your family, with a friend and even with only yourself.

You just have to find that "button" within yourself to turn off that "automatic business modus" in your head, take a deep breath and enjoy.

Have a great October Saturday everyone!!!!

:)))