“When someone you love walks through the door, even if it happens five times a day, you should go totally insane with joy.”

I recently watched this viral short film about the story of a man who battled cancer and his dog who ultimately succumbed to cancer himself. This video had a tremendous effect on me. I have always been a dog lover. I grew up with the kindest, most loving golden retriever (who also was sadly taken from my family when he was only six years old by cancer). We now have a rescue dog from the Lonely Hearts Animal Rescue named Bailey.

In this blog, I write each story through “curious eyes.” The exploratory, curious nature I was told I have had since my early days has carried over into my adulthood. But there is nothing more curious to me than a dog’s eyes (and ears and nose). They are explorers by nature and yet they have this tremendous capacity to drop everything to greet the ones they love the moment they walk through the door. Dogs are simple. They don’t judge, they love. They are happy if they are surrounded by food, water, sunshine and belly rubs. They don’t hold a grudge. And they don’t worry about the past or the future. They truly live in the moment and love unconditionally.

I believe dogs can teach us a lot. To appreciate the breeze in the air, the scent of a home-cooked meal, and the thrill of seeing someone you love. Life goes so fast–literally– we are traveling at approximately 66,000 miles per hour around the sun. Dogs are in our lives for such a short amount of time. Yet those who have had a dog understand the impact they leave on our hearts. I recently saw the film Inside Out, and it made me think of the “core memories” we keep in our minds. These are the moments that leave an impression on us for our whole lives and help to define who we are. The ones we can recall with such clarity, even if decades have passed since the event occurred. One core memory I will never forget is when my family took Bailey on his first trip to the beach. The joy he experienced that day will never leave me. I like to think he feels the same.

We should learn to experience each moment with curious eyes and open hearts. Use every sense in our body to appreciate the beauty of our world and demonstrate the love we have for our friends and family.  We shouldn’t hold on to the past or feel anxiety for the future. We should strive to explore, live, and love as dogs do.

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