Home from the hospital
Everything I ever needed to know about life, I learned from watching my dog. You think that is a silly statement, but once you have eyes to see it, I think you'll agree. Let me give you an example.
Today I came home from the hospital. I have my life. I have a beautiful wife who loves me very much. And I have a best friend and faithful companion that depends on me to come home every day and love on her. She is my four legged spiritual reminder and comrade who has been at my side for 9 years. 9 years of pain and joy and finding myself enough that I could be there for my wonderful wife when the time was right.When I came home from the hospital, she was at the window wagging her tail. I had been gone a few days. She greeted me at the door, my week of necessary possessions in brown paper bags in my arms. I walked into the bedroom that my wife had cleaned for us. I set the brown paper bags in a neat row next to the dresser. I walked back out into the living room and greeted my friend properly. I took her harness and leash from the closet, suited her up, and headed out for a walk. I knew where I was going. I was headed to the woods. I stopped by the gas station and had a smoke. Izzy laid at my side, she knows I am still lost in my addiction, but loves on me without judgment.
When I was done, we headed for the woods. On the way we passed some dried out tufts of flowers, which I would pick in a bouquet for my wife. As we entered the woods, Izzy was in her element. We both breathed in the smell of the fallen leaves. Felt them crunching under our feet. Noticed the beautiful, strong, brown barren trees all around us.
The wood chip path provided the soft direction for our journey to the pond. One foot in front of the other. Izzy sniffed the air and the smells of the small woodland creatures who went about their business before and after we passed. Every step brought us closer to peace and when the "spring peeper" pond appeared, now silent in the fall, we settled in on God's seat, a fallen tree. Let me explain that. I have a favorite picture of a garden. I walk into the garden, wild flowers ravaging the rock walls, which open by a path to the peace inside. Amidst the bright green explosion of life, I come to a fallen tree, by the river.. a river of time. Jesus sits on the log and becons me to come sit. In his eyes, pure love. They say to me. You are here. You are very good (as God said on the last day of creation when he created man and woman and then said "it is very good."). Then. "Come now and sit with me, my beloved. "
You are here. You are good. Come now and sit with me, my beloved.
I sat down on the massive, strong, but fallen tree by the now silent and shrunken spring peeper pond. I let the leash go. Izzy went about sniffing everything in sight, rooting through the leaves for clues to the inhabitants business there. I turned to the pond and took some deep breaths, noticing the breath going in and out. This made me present and I opened my soul to the sounds around me. There was an eagle screeching a lonely song, ringing over the woods, and animals scurrying through the underbrush and leaves. There was the cool wind of evening chasing the late afternoon sun to bed. I turned to notice Izzy find a small tree by the path, a short distance from my seat.
She slowly approached the tree, and began sniffing it intently. All around the tree and up the bark. The tree was the only thing in her world at that moment. She was totally focused on it. Hyper focused. She scanned it, read it for scents left by other dogs that had passed by. How long had they passed? How was their health? What other animals were here? She was totally engrossed.
In my state, I knew what she was doing. She was focused on one thing, already knowing its place in the environment around it. Because she knew where she was.
It is all I need to do. There was something I had to take from my hospital stay. Know the environment and find that thing in it. The thing you can know. Then learn everything about it. Then move on.
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