Here comes the sun!

The dew shimmered like little diamonds as the grass caught the early morning sun. For the briefest of moments, I considered stepping out of my car and running my hands across the ground since the “diamonds” looked big enough to sweep up into my bare hands. 

I had driven my wife to an early morning doctor’s appointment with her pulmonary specialist to help with her asthma and allergies. While she was poked and prodded, testing the capacity of her lungs, I sat in the car daydreaming and taking in the start of the day. (I had forgotten that in the age of Covid, the nurses preferred that my wife go it alone for her appointment.)

In the middle of a storm

In the car, I let out a sigh. The business park seemed unusually busy for a Friday. The driver of a large dump truck slowly drove going up a nearby hill, grinding the truck’s gears; commuters cut through the office park in an effort to cut five minutes off their drive; and a construction worker in a small backhoe backed-up every few minutes, creating a disturbance with its constant beeping. 

For a brief second, I wanted to raise my hands to get the attention of the nearby workers in yellow hard hats and sweatshirts and ask them to stop the ruckus. I wanted to tell them to take a break, to take a breather, so that I could enjoy the coming morning. 

I thought about it, but, who was I to tell them to stop, I wasn’t their boss, and, instead, something else caught my attention. An old man and a small Corgi puppy walked quietly on the sidewalk. They’d walk 20 yards and then stop. The man would lean against his cane and the dog would tip-toe onto the grass to sniff around. The dog seemed to be searching for something, I assume the scent of another dog or something to herd, but who knows? The two would standstill for a few more minutes and then be off again. 

This went on for a good ten minutes. Stop, start, stop again.

Rest easy my friend

Everyone else was caught up in the moment, sleep-walking with blinders, these two, though, seemed to be the exact opposite, heads-up, marveling at the morning light. They took in the warmth of the fall day. Right on cue, the man unzipped his jacket, stretched out his arms high over and behind his head, and then leaned over and tousled the dog’s ears.

He said something to the dog, but I couldn’t make it out in the construction racket. The dog returned the man’s smile with a smile of its own and a look of absolute love. They were enjoying the beautiful morning and each other’s company. 

The beautiful fall weather will soon be replaced with snow and cold temps, but I’ll remember the man and his dog well into the darkest days of winter. They reminded me once again to thank God and enjoy Mother Nature’s bounty.