Explorers

   My dogs make me laugh.  They are such a big part of my life, full of joy, slobbery kisses, and paw holding.  But, one of the characteristics that I just love the most are the ways they explore the world around them.  I have the tendency to just gloss over the details in places I see every day.  Don’t ask me what someone else wore, because unless it really caught my eye – there is a good chance I won’t notice.  I have to really catch my attention and bring it into focus with a purpose for detail to really notice them. The dogs on the other hand… I think they notice everything.  Megan notices everything that goes in the house, especially if it involves the treat door.  I think she has a special alarm hard wired into her ears to go off – “treat door opening, treat door opening, approach treat door with caution and sad puppy face.”    She takes it all in, holding up her head like some dignitary and observes her realm.  Megan even notices when I put on my tennis shoes, work shoes, or am barefoot.  They all mean something different to her and they are clues to how her day is going.  Sierra takes in all the motion in bushes.  She will stick her head into the bushes and soon birds will go flying from them.   And she loves lights, dancing and prancing around the bushes whenever the lights are to be turned on.   Snowflakes are carefully selected from across the yard to be chased down with delight.  Buddy is the youngest and notices everything, birds flying, sounds from the computer, the water bowl being filled.  They all take such great notice of their world and know the details.  I love my furry explorers.  They know so much and notice so much in their environment.  They are beautiful explorers. 

A Lesson from STS 133

I had planned and dreamed for months of watching, feeling, and hearing a shuttle launch. The Discovery was scheduled to launch November 1, 2010 as mission STS 133. Well, Robert Burns was right as he told the mouse that fore planning can run amuck.
    “But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
     In proving foresight may be vain;
     The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men
     Gang aft agley,
     An'lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
     For promis'd joy!”
    Well, it was not “grief an’pain” but disappointment as the Discovery launch was pushed back one day after another until now it is rescheduled for November 30. But, even though the best laid plans did not go as planned, I did get to see this assembly of parts together on the launch pad. It continues to amaze me that the many thousands of parts assembled to create enough thrust to safely launch this bird into the atmosphere.
   So, the Discovery didn’t launch as planned, and here is the lesson – keep trying and persevere. Persevere when things do not go as planned; persevere when there are technical difficulties and weather delays. Persevere when others do not understand the dream. Persevere through and keep working, because though the plans can “agley,” without a plan and perseverance there is no discovery.

Seasons and Roadmaps

   Each changing season seems to lead me to want to travel someplace different. The blustery weather that we awoke to yesterday here in our corner of the state had me dreaming of getting in the car and heading off down the road, but to where?

   The fall winds blow, the leaves start making their showy appearance and I start dreaming of South Dakota. The last warmth to find the plains before the beginning of the wintry snow that will sweep through the grasses. I so would love to find myself winding the way through the pine trees as the snow starts, and then watching the buffalo walk through the whiteness, creating a path with their amazingly deft mass.
   Or the cool wetness of a spring day, whisking me off to Alaska in July; the feel of the water into the air, the vapor of the sea moist and salty to the touch. Blooms are fragrant and the leaves are deep shades of green.
  As I prepare to travel now, I think of other places I have been fortunate enough to see. There is such a beautiful world out there, so many roads to travel. I’m excited to be off and exploring.