Try some labradoodle-esque enthusiasm!

Scout enjoying early evening on the golf course

All summer long I tried not to complain about the heat. We did, after all, choose to live here in west-central Florida. But - and I'm not making this up - even our free-spirited, enthusiastic labradoodle eventually grew tired of the thick blanket of humidity that made walks at any time of the day or night oppressively hot.

By mid-July she started laying perfectly still at walk time. She tried to blend in with the carpet when I called her name; if she was close to the couch she'd lie on her side with her head underneath the furniture; she pretended she couldn't hear the rattle of the leash; the spring was out of her step.

Enthusiasm! These last couple of weeks, however, Scout has been dancing down the street like a puppy. She sniffs the air eagerly when there's a breeze/ She fairly prances. She walks with her tail standing straight up.

With the grass no longer permanently wet, sometimes we'll walk the golf course behind the house. That's where I caught the picture above. The light was all wrong and Scout is little more than a silhouette, but I like the effect.

Loving the fall!

So I'll leave that image with you as a brief Friday morning inspiration.

• Don't sit around the house this weekend;
• enjoy the fall;
• show some "labradoodle-esque" enthusiasm;
• be thankful for the amazing beauty and creativity that defines creation;
• live like you mean it... because that's how we were created.

Embrace the words of Jesus -"I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of! (John 10:10)

Happy weekend! - DEREK