Time-stopping minutes in my day!

My flock!

I’m beginning to feel like the Pied Piper of Seagulls - those daft little birds seem to have noticed that I’m the whacky woman who walks on the sand every day and feeds them dog treats. The hound’s not too keen on me feeding them her treats though ... she’s even taken to trying to find the pellets in the waves before the gulls do!

No more patiently waiting whilst I throw HER treats to the birds .... not on your nelly ... she’s in there amongst them claiming her share!


My world is made up of moments like this .... time-stopping minutes in my day that I wish I could pause ... and then play over and over again! 

Auckland seems to have escaped the woeful weather system that’s been plaguing other parts of the country ... today has been magnificent! The rocks at the far end of Ladies Bay were golden this morning as the sun’s rays warmed my world. Autumn can keep giving me days like this - they’re way better than the summer we didn’t have!

I’m still trying to work out in my mind who’s teaching who in these relationships we have with our hounds. As humans at the top of the food chain, we automatically assume that we’re the ones doing the teaching ... but so often, in any relationship with an animal, without realising it, we get taught so much too.

My hound’s taught me that every day life is exciting ... she can’t wait to greet me first thing in the morning ... she can’t wait for her breakfast because she knows it’s the pre-cursor to going for our ramble ... and rambling means sand and the waves and our fellow ‘humans with hounds’. Relationships with others nurture our souls ... we all, hounds included, need love, time and affection on a daily basis ... connecting with others FEEDS my soul.

I’ve learnt so much about living ‘in the moment’ from her too ... appreciate each and every happening in your life as it happens. These are those time-stopping moments that I want to record and play back again and again and again ... they remind me that life is precious and that each one of us is unique and special .... whacky maybe ... but still special.

Indy and Chocolat showing Julia how to "lift" her paw!

She's a quick learner!!

Julia gave me one of those time-stopping moments today too, and it was that action that made me think of the lessons our hounds teach us ... though in a slightly different way to what I’ve just mentioned. Indy and Chocolat have taught Julia how to lift her paw too ... not that she gets a treat, unless you call her caffeine fix a treat ... but now, when they lift their paws for their treat outside the Village Co-op, they’ve got Julia lifting her foot too!  They are such CLEVER hounds ... it didn’t take them long to teach Julia how to do it!

As I’m sitting here finishing this blog and editing the photos, my youngest lemming is in the kitchen making himself a pizza. There’s no-one else in the kitchen except him but there’s a WHOLE conversation going on!! He talks to himself about WHAT he’s doing, ASKS himself questions and then ANSWERS them .... and, best of all, just said THANK YOU to the grater when he’d finished grating the cheese!! Oh yes ... he’s definitely weird!