BarkingProse

When you last barked you were very hard on yourself. You said you are not brave and you’re a loser. You were embarrassed because you got carsick on our last drive.

It makes me sad to know you hold these thoughts. I do not share the same opinion and hope you will listen to what I have to say and ponder these things in your heart.

Being brave is not the same as being unafraid. It’s easy to do something if you are not afraid. It’s much more difficult to acknowledge your fear and do it anyway.

You and Journey are very different even though you come from the same place and have relatives in common.

Journey was born confident and happy. Life has been easy for Journey because she sees the world as a welcoming place.

You were born thoughtful and wary. You are not sure what the world holds for you and you need time to decide how to respond to new people and places.

You, Finn, are a sweet soul. You have unique spiritual gifts and your ability to feel what others feel is remarkable for a young boy dog.

You have already had success in your young life. You excelled in all your classes. You walk politely on a leash and listen when I ask you to do things. You wait for me when we leave the house and look back to make sure I am with you.

Your job is to be the very best you can be, not to emulate Journey or any other dog you admire. Your courage is of a different sort but you are brave nonetheless.

It’s not easy being the little brother to a diva, but you are the best little brother Journey could have asked for.

In closing Finn I want you to  know how much I love and admire you. You are a blessing to all of us and I am very grateful to be your mom.

So don’t be hard on yourself. Know that you are loved and you have powerful gifts. You will find your way in this world…..I promise.

Love, Mom

Yesterday wasn’t a good day for me. I screwed up big time and feel like such a loser. Everything I did was wrong from start to finish.

It began when mom decided to take me and Journey for a walk. I don’t like to go in the car so she had to lift me in. I know it’s hard on her back but I can’t help myself.

We drove half an hour to a nice park where mom and Journey go all the time. Mom put me on a long leash and hooked Journey up to her harness.

Journey is a hand full to walk. She pulls and circles and follows her nose like she’s a bloodhound on the scent. I stay close to mom and always keep a loose leash.

We’d only been on the walk a few minutes when we came across a man playing frisbee with his dog. The dog ran over to us to say hi. I didn’t like his looks and started growling real low. When he got close to Journey I told him to back off or we’d have trouble.

Mom stepped between me and the dog and told me she’d take care of things. The dog lost interest and went back to his owner.

Right away I started drooling. I do this when I’m upset or stressed out. I guess I was both after the car ride and the encounter with the uppity dog. Soon I had three inch strands of drool hanging from my mouth. Mom cut the walk short and put Journey back in the car. Then she walked me near the car for a while in hopes I would relax and settle down.

Finally it was time to leave and I jumped into the car just like Journey does. I was happy knowing I was going home and felt safe in my crate.

I guess happiness wasn’t enough though because on the way home I puked in my crate. When mom pulled into the garage and let me out first like she always does, she found a big puddle of what I ate for breakfast hours earlier.

I felt so bad. Mom had to hose out my crate and wipe off my fur. Journey had to wait in her crate until I was all cleaned up and my crate was upside down to dry out.

Mom told me not to worry and everything was all right. She told me I have special gifts and it’s her job to help me be the best dog I can be.

Problem is I want to be brave like Journey. I want to go places with mom and make her proud. Yesterday I wasn’t brave and I’m sure mom wasn’t proud of me.

Journey says it’s not a big deal. I can be the stay at home dog and look after dad while she rides shotgun with mom. I guess that would be okay but it still leaves me feeling like a loser.

Mom said she’s gonna take me to a fun class where I get to learn tricks. Maybe at least I can show off for company and feel better about myself.

Journey said I should visualize myself being brave. Maybe I’ll do that. Or maybe people who read this bark will give me some suggestions. I’m trying to stay hopeful.