Petrichor and More...

Ah, Petrichor! The smell of rain falling on dry ground. Wafting through my window right now. I breathe deep, and am reminded of goodness. The earth, sea, and sky in one gigantic inhale.

Jeremiah just came upstairs in his fresh-out-of-the-shower underwear, crying because he couldn’t find the dog. He had looked everywhere, inside and out, and it was beginning to feel like a Winn-Dixie moment. We stepped onto the porch, thunder and lightning crashing, water pouring out of the storm drains like spring run-off. We called for him, whistled...heard nothing. We pictured him huddled somewhere, shivering, too frightened and wet to find his way home.

Then we heard a distant yelp. Sounded like it came from out back. We ran to the back door and called for him, whistled...heard nothing. Then one more little yelp. Sounded like maybe he was stuck somewhere. As I went to put on some shoes and a jacket to go look for him, we heard the yelp again, closer. Could it be?

Then a figurative bolt of lightning hit Jeremiah: I think he’s in the garage! So we opened the door...and there he was: safe, warm, and dry. Jeremiah picked him up and buried his nose in his fur, then carried him down to bed.

I wonder if there’s a word for the cozy scent of clean boy holding dry dog? Because they could market it. They really could. A combination of friendship, relief and joy.

All I Ever Need to Know About Mothering I Learned from our Sheltie

• Wake everybody up with wet, sloppy kisses.
• Circle the house periodically to make sure your loved ones are all safe and accounted for.
• Freak out if someone escapes without telling you.
• Make sure your bark (an upbeat attention-getter) is always worse than your bite (gentle, playful or non-existent).
• Gather the whole family for mealtimes and activities.
• Constantly look back over your shoulder to be sure they’re still following you.
• Tolerate LOTS of chaos and silliness.
• Good-naturedly allow everyone in the family to maul you to death
• If somebody wants to be with you, act like you don’t have anything else on your mind or your schedule.
• When somebody’s sick, sit vigilantly by their side.
• (Same goes for when somebody’s sad.)
• Keep one part of the house immaculately clean, and don’t worry too much about the rest.
• Run to the door with joy whenever someone comes home.
• Alert everyone if there’s an unfamiliar intruder.
• Take advantage of every opportunity to snuggle.
• Play with the kids, indoors and out.
• Put up with lots of teasing and hyperactivity.
• Hoard treats.
• Be gentle.
• Take naps.
• Listen intently (even if you don’t understand a word they’re saying).
• Maintain a ready sense of adventure at all times.
• Give everybody a luxuriant bedtime pedicure. :)

Most important of all:
When people forget about you, ignore you, hurt you, shut you out, and maybe even step on you...love them anyway.