My wife knows me too well, and she knows exactly how to tempt me to close shop early and come home for the day. All she really has to do sometimes is send me one little picture.

I now get it

I think I can remember a younger version of myself who would witness a person, usually older, obsessed with a dog and wonder how such a thing could happen.

I should confess as well, that most of the time I would associate such devotion for a dog as a sign of loneliness, a way to compensate for something missing in life. But I see this in an entirely different light these days.

When I say I get it now, I truly mean it. There comes a time in a man or a woman's life, when you begin to value innocence above many other virtues. It very well may be connected to the realization that our own innocence has faded into nothingness, and we miss it dearly, but of this second observation I'm not entirely sure.

When they are happy, I'm happy

I often mention to my wife, how happy it makes me to see our dogs enjoy the lives we give them. It's nothing really, warm meals, a comfortable bed and affection, but it's obvious to anyone that has lived such beautiful dynamic, how much these simple things mean to them.

You would have to have the coldest of hearts not to smile, while watching a dog or two play in the beach, splashing in the water, chasing each other with an innocence only comparable to that of little children. And there are times when witnessing these magical moments make my day.

MenO