Sometimes a year can go by, and it's difficult to pull anything notable from it. Then there are those other years. Add to it the phenomenon of blending; was that this year or last year? Three years ago now? The passage of time is one of those realities that feels so much like a blessing some days and then a curse on others. Whoever acknowledged that time passes more quickly the older we get was spot on as well.
A year ago, magical Mavis joined the brood at the Salty Ewe. Down thirteen sheep and up a pup. She has more energy than the whole flock combined, save the lambs in their early months. Their old pasture has become her romping ground for three of the four seasons, with the beach becoming summer's running ground. She has brought Henry's puppy spirit back and also pulled me along through some of the year's most challenging times. Her eyes are the most human I have ever seen in a dog, and her intelligence feels like it matches my own some days. Other days, she reminds me she is a puppy and has a lot of growing to do.
Don't we all.
That's really what this year has been about. Old dogs learning new tricks. Dusting off the mirrors and looking deep into the reflections, seeing life with a perspective and purpose that makes me want to slow down time. Since that's not possible, finding ways to move through the days and weeks and years with the positivity and playful ebullience that Mavis has brought to the farmette is all I can do.
It'll do, it'll do.
