Upcoming 17th Birthday

Some may be wondering how I'm doing because, ya know, I'm adorable and people tend to be interested in adorable things. So, here it goes:

I'm great! I mean, my back legs hurt if I go up and down too many stairs and I get tired if I'm moving around too much, and there is something about a wall in my house I like to bark at for no reason. But, other than that, great! I get to lay around all day, hang out with my mom, and live my best retired life. My mom calls me a living, breathing, pillow because I tend to just... um... lay a lot.

My tiny humans are not tiny anymore and go to Kindergarten all day so there's a significant reduction in noise in my house. It's fantastic! I also get a lot more of mom's attention. Sometimes I still do things for extra attention, like pretend something is really wrong with me and get mom in a panic only to find out 12 hours later I'm completely fine. It's great!

My only struggle is finding purpose. What does an old, handsome dog like me do in my retired years to not get bored? I try to keep busy by eating things I shouldn't, barking at the wall I mentioned earlier, follow my mom as though I'm Velcro and stuck to her... but man that only takes up so many hours in a day! As you may recall, I used to be a Therapy Dog in my working years and have been retired for 12 years now!

I guess I find purpose in small things, now that I think about it. If I notice the rug in our craft room is a little dirty, I spread out pieces of my food to signal mom she has to vacuum. So, I guess I'm kinda like a janitor. My tiny humans drop a lot of food, that I so graciously clean up, so that's another example of me as a professional cleaner.

I also force my mom to get some fresh air & sunshine when she takes me outside, so we could say I'm also a bit of a health coach.

I greet people at my front door, so you could say I'm the sole member of my household welcoming committee. Granted, I can't open the door by myself and need a human's assistance, but that's a minor detail.

I also tend to be in places that are the most inconvenient possible. For example, if my tiny humans are swinging I'll stand right behind them or in front of them so they have to scramble to stop before they run into me. Or I stand right in front of wherever my mom wants to go and trip her. So, you could say I'm a bit of a personal trainer specializing in agility training.

I think it's important to write my own narrative about what purpose I have. On the outside I just look like an old dog who loves to nap. On the inside, I'm still fully alive with purpose and meaning every day. It's up to me to write my own story. No one else's opinion matters.