Day 38

6/18/22

Is there anything better than rolling in the grass if you are a golden retriever? I think not! Ranger LOVES it and will take advantage of every opportunity to wiggle that sweet body, stand up, shake the grass off and then saunter over to me for a scratch behind the ears. What a good dog!

Shortly after this picture was taken (Notice the upside-down flower pots covering the holes Gus has dug!), Lilly, Ranger and I headed down to the river on our daily walk. Again, I heard this little voice yell, "Hey, Nanny! Can I walk with you?" Since I am lucky enough to have Asher living next door, I quickly cleared it with his mom, and off we set out on day two of our walks together.

The questions were plentiful once again, but my favorite today was, "Hey, Nanny! Look at all the bumped cars!" It took me a moment to see a variety of dents and scrapes as we walked by a parking lot full of cars. He is a definite smile-maker for this Nanny!

We approached the same park, but today there was a sweet little girl learning how to navigate the ladders and slides. It turned our that this 18-month-old lived down the street from us.

Asher went up and introduced himself as the father looked on with a smile. I had cautioned my grandson to be gentle and not bump the little girl, but I needn't have been concerned.

As parent and grandparent watched, an easy friendship developed between the two children. I marveled at how effortlessly they communicated and reacted to one-another in such positive ways. There was no awkwardness in their play, but only acceptance for limitations, encouragement for small accomplishments and smiles all around.

I found myself wondering why adults can't flow comfortably into an encounter instead of looking at a stranger as if one is trying to do a dance they don't know. If we could all be more like those two innocent children...accepting and enjoying the moment...life would seem to be less stressful.

We said our good-byes and headed up the hill to home. (Of course, there was the smallest remains of the puddle from the day before and he needed to do a small jump.) Lilly and Ranger were leading the way with wagging tails. I wondered if Asher had enjoyed the encounter with someone so much younger. I asked him if he had a good time and he said, "Oh, yes, Nanny! I had the best time!"

Then, once again, he looked up at me with those brown eyes and said, "It's a good day, Nanny!" I was humbled by the simplicity of an encounter that could bring this little guy such joy.

"It IS a good day, Buddy!" I replied. I, for one, am going to try to find a little more joy in the simplest of things.