Doc has been cooking up a storm since early this morning in preparation for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow. As usual I wait patiently for Doc to drop something on the kitchen floor that I can nibble on to keep up my strength. As she cooks, we laugh about last year’s Thanksgiving when she dropped the turkey on the kitchen floor, then cooked it and let her family eat it without saying a word. Here’s hoping that doesn’t happen again this year.

Since it’s almost Thanksgiving, Doc and I started talking about what we are thankful for. I think it’s easy to get in a rut sometimes and start complaining about everything that is wrong in your life.

Doc says when the Pilgrims came to the new world, they were trying to start fresh for themselves in a new land and faced many hardships along the way, yet they created a day to be thankful. Can you imagine if they came forward in time like the “Back to the Future” movie and instead of the DeLorean, landed the Mayflower in the United States in 2015? After the initial shock, they would probably have a hard time believing that you could go to the store and buy your turkey rather than hunting for it, then place it in an oven to cook it in a house with all of our modern conveniences. The Pilgrims would be taken aback if they heard any of us complaining. Even most dogs in 2015 live a better life than those Pilgrims did.

Well, we’ve come a long journey since the Mayflower landed and we’re still trying to work things out in America, but as a dog, I have hope for the future. I will spend tomorrow with family and remember to be thankful for the piece of turkey that Aunt Pat will sneak me under the table when she thinks Doc isn’t looking.

To you and yours, Doc and I wish you many blessings and a Happy Thanksgiving!

Riding with Doc out into the country is always relaxing. I never know where we are headed, but knowing Doc, it will be end up being a big adventure.

I knew we had reached our final destination when she turned down the long gravel driveway and I could see the three horses grazing in the pasture.

As we exited the car by the barn, Doc was greeted by other “horse people” and was also introduced to Native American, Mark” Thunderbird” Henry. I was soon to find out that he was going to lead a drumming circle. Although drumming circles are formed for many different reasons in Native American culture, today we would be honoring the spirit of the horse.

Even though I had to stay outside of the paddock as not to annoy the horses, what I witnessed was a beautiful ceremony that was both hypnotic and spiritual. I was surprised that the drumming and the chanting did not startle the horses, but in fact they stopped grazing and wandered close to the circle as if to join in.

As I looked around on this glorious fall day, I could see some hawks circling overhead, butterflies flitting in the grass nearby and even tiny spiders spinning their webs near the circle, the sun reflecting off of their webs like jewels. It was as if all of nature was participating together.

When the ceremony ended they talked about their experiences and how it affected them. Doc looked so relaxed. I was sorry to leave as it had been such a wonderful day.

On the way home, Doc and I talked about how it’s important to take these special experiences and try to keep them close to your heart in your everyday life. “It’s what keeps me grounded and reminds me that nature has all the answers that we really need” she said. I can’t argue with that, after all, being a dog I have known that all along.

I knew when I saw the suitcase roll out that Doc was up to something, but I stayed in denial until I actually saw her packing. The woman was taking enough stuff to flee a Zombie Apocalypse, so I kept my eye on her. I thought it was a good sign when I saw her put my bed and food in the car. Relieved when she opened the back door and told me to get in the car, I assumed we were going on vacation together. Boy, was that a wrong assumption.

Before long we pulled into the veterinarians driveway and my heart sank. My denial turned into the reality of knowing I was staying behind. I was greeted warmly by the staff and then Doc kissed me on the top of the head and said good-by. ” I’ll be back, be a good boy” she said and then she walked out the door without a second glance. After 24 hours, I was getting home sick. I missed Doc’s smell, sleeping in the bed next to her and playing in the yard. To make it even worse, the staff at the office showed me pictures she had posted on Facebook of all the fun she was having without me. Talk about rubbing it in

Five long days passed when one of the veterinary assistances came into the kennel to tell me that Doc was back. I had already decided that I was going to ignore her when I saw her. As we came into the lobby she turned to me, smiled and bent down to rub me under the chin. I couldn’t help it, my tail started wagging and I leaned in against her. Doc looked rested and happy. Even though I missed her, I realized at that moment that Doc needs to get away sometimes and have new adventures without me.