Sometimes in life, the jelly is just going to fly.

Two short stories...

Cheers! And, thanks for joining us!

You Take It. You Wear It.

Another round…

I’ve mentioned that I used to do a bit of jogging. I did it for years…never fast, just slow and steady. Half marathons were my favorite. I loved the entire training process and the sense of accomplishment crossing the finish line. As a side note — I also loved the swag that typically comes with any race day packet!

Unfortunately, my knees did not appreciate the repetitive beating. And, they continually let me know how they feel about my previous endeavors. So…sometimes I wear a knee brace (or two) — specifically a patellar tendon strap. I know, a great ego booster, right?!

Well, Blue sometimes wears my knee brace too. It just gets looped right into his collar after he takes it!

An unexpected find.

I read that a walk for a dog really calms the nervous system. It’s like a Target shopping excursion for a human — umm, yep I relate to that. OR it’s like having a cup of coffee for a human — and I definitely relate to that! Neither of those things should be rushed. Nor should Blue’s walks.

So…I am very intentional at giving Blue lots of time to sniff and explore on our daily outings. And, in between his sniffing we try to cover a fair amount of ground so that I can feel accomplished with the number of steps I’ve taken.

Well, Blue and I were on our way back to the house from a walk. And, I noticed a sandwich had been dropped in the grass and next to the sidewalk.

- I spotted it before we approached it, so I asked Blue to “leave it”.

- I also had Blue’s leash and was ready to call him to me should he start to move in the direction of the sandwich.

I’m glad to report that Blue had his listening ears on and did, in fact, “leave it”. And as we strolled by the sandwich, I took a moment and reflected on how much progress we have made together. I maybe even popped my collar in pride and accomplishment.

Worth noting here — I left the sandwich lying on the ground because I didn’t have any extra bags or towels with me to grab it and discard it. Yep, you see where this is going…

So, the next day Blue and I again took our delightful walk. On the way back Blue was walking perfectly by my side as we crossed the street. And as we completed the crosswalk and stepped back onto the curb, Blue - at the speed of light - made a leap into the grass AND collected something in his mouth!

I immediately recognized it as the PB & J sandwich from the day before!

I told Blue to “sit” and started retrieving every piece I could from his mouth as quickly as possible.

The jelly was flying.

Literally, the jelly was flying.

- It was all over Blue’s face.

- It was all over my coat and my hands.

- It went everywhere!

So many thoughts were going through my mind…

- I wanted it out of his mouth to keep him safe.

- He is so smart! That little BRAT remembered the sandwich from the day before!

- He knows better!

And, as I worked feverishly to keep him safe and clean up what I could…Blue continued to sit calmly.

I got everything I could out of his mouth, gave him the “mom look”, and we walked home in silence. The little angel — Blue walked perfectly by my side the rest of the way home.

When we got into the house I told my husband the dramatic story. I described the sandwich in great detail — shaped like a pot pie, no crust. Clearly it was a PB & J sandwich. And, he immediately came to Blue’s defense. He spoke for Blue and said:

“Well, boss, it was an uncrustable…”.

And we both just laughed.

My husband then gave Blue a second scrub down. And then, after having noticed Blue’s face was sticky DAYS later, he trimmed some of Blue’s facial fur to remove some more remaining jelly.

Laughter And Mindfulness.

I don’t want to make light of the situation with Blue grabbing the uncrustable off of the ground. The truth is I really worry about his safety; consequently, I work very hard with his training and his listening ears.

And, the boy does make me laugh. He lives in the right here, right now. All day. Every day. And, he invites me to live right there with him.

Blue heavily influenced our quote selection for this edition…

We hope our stories brought a smile to you. And perhaps you can remember and reflect on some light-hearted stories in your life. And when you reflect on those stories, maybe notice how that lightness feels in your body.

What We Are Loving:

- Blue and I are loving the spring sunshine and weather. And, we are loving our daily walks and opportunities to hang out together. We are grateful every day to be able to move our bodies. It is a privilege. A true blessing from God.

- Blue and I recently visited a local sporting goods store. And, Blue was able to pick out a new toy — a blue, koala bear.

The koala is so cute!! He sits on our guest bed by the pillows, and every afternoon Blue goes into our guest bedroom and retrieves him.

Seems like he remembers that koala bear and where it stays — just as he remembered that PB & J sandwich on our walk!

In closing this edition, Blue and I again share our gratitude for your interest in our newsletter. We love writing and sharing our stories.

Thank you for following along!

Until we write again,

IG: @dogsandmindfulness