LIVING IN THE MOMENT: DOG AS GURU
Dogs live now. For dogs it is always now. "Time," as we understand it, is a fiction of the human brain; it does not exist for dogs or other animals. Dogs do not experience themselves as living short lives, nor do they perceive us as living long lives. They live every day maximally, for better or worse (therefore, pity those that survive in grievous conditions, as they live that fully as well). A dog's day might be said to be a week, while a man's day might be said to be 16 hours, plus the unconsciousness of sleep. A man's life might be seen as the race of a rat in a wheel, while a dog's life is a slow breeze on a tranquil pond. These differences actually work for us both, man and dog, adding value to the partnership. You cannot sit quietly, contented, with a dog at your side, without feeling your own heart beat a little less fast, your own mind becoming more still.
Dogs are truly Zen - always in the moment and aware. Changes in air pressure have meaning to them; changes in your heart rate, the smell of your perspiration, have meaning to them. Sounds you cannot hear, they can. Light and movement you do not notice, they do. Vibrations in the earth, they are aware of them.
Take note of your dog's eyes and expression, the way he holds his body, the set of the ears, the twitch of the nose and the set of the muzzle. When you pay attention to their signals, you can learn from them and perhaps apply some of their fine understanding to your own way of seeing the world.
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