Do you ever wish you could be as happy, carefree, relaxed, and proud as a dog is? I know I do. Although I have loved animals my whole life and have been around them, last year I got my OWN dog. She is my first dog that is MINE and boy have I learned so, so, SO much from her. She's helped me overcome, accomplish, laugh, and so much more that I cannot even put into words. Dogs are the epitome of what life should be like, no doubt about it!
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WHAT OUR FURRY FRIENDS CAN TEACH US
1. Live in the moment you are in---> I am guilty of this. I often think about the past and the future way too much and it can really mess with my mind. Dog, on the other ~paw~ (lol) live in the moment. When they are eating kibbles, that is all. They are not thinking of yesterday or tomorrow or even 5 minutes from then, they are thinking only about those kibbles.
2. Play often---> This may sound funny, but what I mean is, do what you love to do as often as possible. Dogs LOVE playing and you can just see the joy in their eyes when they're romping around with that rubber squeaky toy is chasing that tennis ball or swimming in that lake! Why shouldn't we have that joy in our eyes when doing what we love?
3. Love/accept yourself---> Dogs could care less about what others think. They love life and do what they want. As humans, we walk around saying stuff like "I wish I was skinny", or "I am so fat", or "I can't eat that because it's fattening". Well guess what, dogs love themselves no matter what they look like. They'll eat that treat because they want it and tastes good. Why can't we be like that? We judge each other way too often and need to just accept each other and lift people up!
4. Forgive people---> Dogs don't hold grudges. If someone yells at them for doing something bad, within minutes they are right there wagging their tail as if nothing happened. They do not dwell on the fact that someone said something that they didn't like. They get over it, so why don't we? You never want to hold a grudge because life is too short.
5. Be dependable---> I can always count on my dog to be there for me. If I am feeling sad, down, or angry, she can always cheer me up no matter what. She can sense when I'm upset and comes to my aid. Humans should be this way too. We should be able to depend on one another. We should be dependable for others. We should be that person that someone can comfortable leaning on in times of stress.
6. Enjoy the outdoors---> Turn off your phones, turn off your computers, turn off your music, and enter the great outdoors. Go for a hike, a nature walk, for a swim, or just sit in a park and take it all in. Be like a dog, explore, have fun. Dogs don't need technology and why do we need to rely on it SO much?
7. Don't wear your scars---> Some dogs have some pretty terrible lives. From being shipped pound to pound, living alone in the wild for days, months, or years, being abused by disgusting humans, and being forgotten. They find the love they need and don't dwell on the past. They learn to trust again and live a happy life, and as humans, we should too. Life is a beautiful thing!
We should live like dogs. If we did, the world would be a much better place. There is so much hate in the world, but dogs are loving, caring, dependable, trusting, comforting, happy, and go lucky. Lets be more like dogs!
With love, animals, and running
Rachel