lessons from the dog (well, she is cute...)

Gotta love the attitude of the average family dog! I noticed this morning how consummately accommodating Scout is - enthusiastically so.

It started when I got out of bed. As I walked past her in the dark I could hear her tail thumping on the floor: "Oh Boy! Daddy's up! If I'm lucky he'll walk into the kitchen!"

I eventually do. And there she is, already waiting for me, lying on her side on the tile floor pretending to be asleep. But I see her eyes follow me all the way to the sink, and she can't help but thump the floor with her tail once again.

So I down a glass of orange juice and get the coffee started. She knows what's coming and just can't contain the excitement: "Daddy's going to go for my leash, I just know it. Walk time. Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy...!"

And off we go. Walk on the grass? "Oh boy!" Cross the road? "Oh boy, oh boy!!" Turn down this street... or that one? "Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!!"

Eventually we make it back home and she's just as excited. Can't wait to get into the house. Can't wait to check her water bowl. Can't wait to eat her breakfast. Can't wait to take mama her coffee: "This is great! This is the best! This is the most wonderful morning I've had since - well - yesterday morning!"

But it's more than simply "Oh boy!" It's a huge dose of grateful along with the enthusiasm. She looks at me as if to say, "Thank you. Thank you so much for this life. I love you, I love you, I love you. There's a reason my tail won't stop wagging, you know..."

PSALM 100 -

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

AMEN! (Oh boy, oh boy!!)