On 01.02.02, I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. Too late for surgery, I had chemotherapy, which failed. In May the chemotherapy was changed and I was soon in remission which was celebrated and welcome and lasted nine years - until October 2011. There was progression in 2011 so more treatment was indicated and I am now back in partial remission. But I'm not only a cancer patient - I also enjoy my family, walk my dogs and am learning to draw and paint. Life is good!

Tuesday, July 05, 2011

Today's read

What a wonderful book!  Dog Walks Man: A Six-Legged Odyssey, by John Zeaman is a joy to read, especially if you have a dog or two around the house.  I have three black labrador retrievers and two are avid walkers.  "Who wants to go for a walk," I sing out and they fall over themselves rushing to the door.

And it's true, I do take notice of the natural world in a different way when I'm with a dog.  Plants or other dogs - especially other dogs that I might not have noticed - are suddenly important when my dog turns to gaze, to huff a bit territorially, and so I would have missed a bit of the walk. When I walk I tend to stay up in my head, thinking and not seeing. Being with a dog reverses this, I see and then I think.

In this book of vignettes and meditations and stories about walking his dogs Pete and Luke, the author helps us see even more.  Dog walkers will especially like this book.  It will give dignity to what is a chore for many.  Those without dogs will see what they are missing and maybe, just maybe, decide a dog is for them too.

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