Immediately,
Una read my mind and started getting all excited and ripping around the
apartment, barking.
Everybody
in the area had the same idea; the park was full, and we had to drive
around looking for a place to park. Before we even stopped, Una was barking
excitedly. It's next to impossible to get her to settle down when she's
in such a mood; it's one of the last bad behaviors we're trying to iron
out. That and jumping on people's groinal regions when she greets them
at the door.
I opened
the door and Una leaped out and started sniffing everything.
I may not
be a doggie, but I was equally excited. It was a deliriously delicious
day. After being bundled up, hiding from the cold, it feels great to get
out, release the hounds and enjoy the fresh breeze.
My friend
and I had brought lunch, so we made a picnic of it while Una barked protectively
at everyone who got within 10 feet of the table. This wouldn't have been
such an issue, if we hadn't been seated so close to a high traffic area.
Finally,
we were ready to hike. Una very considerately waited until we were in
the middle of the woods to do her business on a clean stretch of path,
so that I could carry a full baggie the rest of the way. She knows how
much I love to do that; otherwise, why would I always be collecting her
"presents"? Her plan was foiled when I discovered a trash can
along the trail.
The combination
of recently melted snow and a high volume of foot and bicycle traffic
had created a muddy footpath for the first portion of our journey. We
tried to stay on the edges, and I heard Una yelp, not realizing until
much later that she'd scratched her ear on some thorns.
But after
we cleared the muddy pathway, we came out on the macadam walking and cycling
trail. Una stuck to the snow, which contained so many interesting smells
that she had to eat some of it (the snow, that is).
My friend
and I were trying to figure out what makes spring smell so good. Is it
because our noses don't work as well in the cold? Or because the heat
releases fragrances? Or was it because the green things, dormant for the
last few months, were now beginning to flourish?
We walked
four miles, enjoying the light breeze, the warm sun on our skin, and talking
about old times. Families on bicycles were out, the children, like wheeled
ducklings, following their parents. Some couples were out with strollers,
some older women out for a brisk walk, and cyclists with helmets and mud
on their legs.
Every once
in awhile, there were dips and gullies, patches of wooded areas still
covered with snow, and a blast of cool, refreshing air.
There were
old buildings along the trail, some in ruins and some holding together
almost as if someone might still live in them. The winter had been harsh
on one of the houses which, the last time I saw it, had a roof and except
for boarded up windows, looked like an old farmhouse where some quiet
person might live. But now the roof had caved in and it was a modern day
ruin of stone and weather-beaten wood. It had a certain grace to it, tangled
up with tree trunk and vine.
By the time
we left, the sun was falling and most of the families had cleared off.
We wiped the mud off Una's legs before driving home. She was exhausted
and fell asleep in my friend's lap, sleeping the satisfied sleep of a
dog filled with happy, springtime memories.
Moral:
Celebrate
the green.
Copyright
2003 by Alyce Wilson
Musings
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