From Chert Dog’s perspective, “Doghead is pretty easy to learn, you just have to speak from your heart.” This velvety Black with Chocolate accents English Labrador Retriever came…
When I first laid eyes on her, I was hooked. My heart skipped
several beats! The sound of her bark was music to my Doghead
ears! She ran to me, with her fluffy white hair flowing in the gentle
breeze and her bright eyes winking at me as she ran up to me and
then around me and underneath me. I am in love for the first time
in my life! And better yet, she lives across the street from where I
now live! Oh, thank you God for giving me someone to love while I
am here helping out so many people! Well, we know that all things
work together for those that love God! All this diet and exercise has
transformed my body back to what I looked like when I was much
younger. I have so much energy now and it feels wonderful to go for
walks and actually jog a bit! All this preparation was definitely for a
reason. This little white flirty number moved in across the street and
my jaw dropped – she is the gal for me! Now I think I can realize just
how much John loved his wife. This lovely Bichon is named Syria and
our lives have changed for the better. She loves me just as much as I
love her – who would have guessed it?! Now, every single morning
for my walk I must go over to her house to say “hi.” Sometimes her
family opens the door for her to let her come out to see me, but other
times she just sits at the glass door looking out at me. I just don’t
understand why Lori can’t go over to the door and open it, but I guess
it is about respect of other people’s property and privacy. But all I
want to do is just be with her – she brings such joy to my heart and I
have a jump in my walk and a smile all of the time. Thank you, God,
for bringing Syria not only into my life, but across the street as well!
Bootcamp has been very challenging for me as I am
ALWAYS hungry and get very tired on my walks uphill. After my
daily ‘choopie fit” I normally have “doggie aerobics” which entails
stretching my legs and working them as if I were swimming. I just
LOVE to swim! We also have fun with “spin the dog” which seems to
work very nicely on the carpeted floor in the living area. I get turned
around and around until I get really dizzy. It actually is lots of fun
because it makes me feel like a puppy once again. It is so important
to incorporate daily exercise into your life. As I am finding out,
I feel better, I look better and I have a brighter outlook and enjoy
activities more now that I am slimming down and building stronger
muscles. Sometimes I am referred to as Mr. Slimbutt which actually
is a wonderful compliment as opposed to my earlier nickname of
Mr. Coffee Table. Isn’t it great to tape over old messages with new
ones that are uplifting, motivating and energizing?! Oh boy, oh boy,
oh boy!
In my new neighborhood, there are several children who
come over to visit ME and even ask if they can walk ME! It makes
my heart sing and my dancing front paws sound like tap shoes on
the sidewalk. I get so excited going for walks with my new friends.
In the mornings, Lori walks me to the end of the block to visit with
a Slovak gentleman who reminds me a bit of John. He usually wears
a quilted flannel shirt just like my Master did and even speaks to me
in Slovak (Lori attempts to speak some words, but her inability to roll
her “rrrr’s” is a real disadvantage in speaking the language correctly).
Then the school bus arrives and all of my new friends get aboard the
bus and wave good-bye as they ride up the hill. I wish I could go to
school with them. I could talk to them about all of my stories that I am
sharing with you and they would laugh along with some of my antics.
Maybe some of the children have gone through losing someone that
they loved which would be something I could help them relate to as
well. I think what would be the most fun if I went to school is to ride
on the bus! I just LOVE RIDES! Don’t all Dogheads?…
“Once I used to think that shadows were to hide; But now I am very clear that that is where faith, hope and love abide.”
L.D. Marchell
“It is family which has no boundaries in unconditional love, surpassed by blood lines, defined by the attunement of the heart, we seldom glimpse the vast array of soul family members until we become awake within the consciousness of the heart which speaks truth in all its purity. Therefore, become aware of your soul family as they are calling you home.”
Connie Andrea Marchell
“The conscious pause of the moment; The silent pause of the mind. The alignment of connection; Of the soul to the Divine.”
Lisa Ann Carucci Lash
“Mindfulness = apparent by the breath of life, the peacefulness of nature, the energy from Gaia, the embodiment of the greatest gift of all – life to share, give, receive, embrace – memories of a lifetime.”
L.D. Marchell
“The hawk’s confirming wings,
In circles up above,
Fly closer to us in,
A message of pure love.”
Lisa Ann Carucci Lash
“Those that mind don’t matter; And those that matter don’t mind.”
Dr. Seuss (Ted Geisel)
“It has become apparent to me that the more I learn about others, the better I feel about myself; It is by selfless love that we die to self where then Christ can shine brightly through our lives. Crucifixion of the heart, then, is where the Sacred Heart of Jesus Shines.”
Connie Andrea Marchell
Look Up!
“Gold and White; Rays of sun; Infinite Love.”
Lisa Ann Carucci Lash
“Tire swings; Peaceful things. Nature brings; All of me.”
“Sing of deep blue skies; Of traveling mystical clouds arise.”
L.D. Marchell
“The buds push forth the Autumn leaves; In preparation for the upcoming Spring.”
L.D. Marchell
“Be it the child who teaches the parent, or the parent that instructs the child; Great Wisdom is gleaned from the mouths of babes, it seems.”
Connie Andrea Marchell
Park On Sunday
Crisp of air,
Swift of foot,
Skating, futbol, play.
Love and laughter,
Geese and friends,
Autumn, Park on Sunday.
Lisa Ann Carucci Lash
“Joyously we skate and sing; Ever mindful of the simple things.”
Connie Andrea Marchell
“Oh the happiness that springs; From just the simple, humble things!”
L.D. Marchell
“Doghead is pretty easy to learn; You just have to speak from the heart.”
“My Father’s Greatest Gift: Life Lessons from a Black English Labrador Retriever.”
L.D. Marchell
“In the fresh air and sunshine bright; I find true meaning within my life. Through the twists and turns that weave our path; the meaning becomes much clearer when you look back!”
L.D. Marchell
“Ever joyously we sway and swing; Upon nature’s beauty of everything!”
Infinite gratitude to the beauty of our surroundings, of friends and family with heartfelt thankfulness for their generosity from the heart! May our focus on all the wonder and expansive glory surrounding us and the miraculous gift of the breath of life within us be ever kept in present moment appreciative awareness!
“It is a woman’s nature to be constant – to love one and one only, blindly, tenderly, and for ever – bless them, dear creatures!”
Anne Bronte
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“All our talents increase in the using, and every faculty, both good and bad, strengthens by exercise.”
Anne Bronte
“I would not send a poor girl into the world, ignorant of the snares that beset her path; nor would I watch and guard her, till, deprived of self-respect and self-reliance, she lost the power or the will to watch and guard herself.”
Anne Bronte
“A hardness such as this is taught by tough experience and despair alone.”
Anne Bronte
“His heart was like a sensitive plant, that opens for a moment in the sunshine, but curls up and shrinks into itself at the slightest touch of the finger, or the lightest breath of wind.”
Anne Bronte
“But he who dares not grasp the throne should never crave the rose.”
Anne Bronte
“I allow she has small claims to perfection; but then, I maintain that, if she were more perfect, she would be less interesting.”
Anne Bronte
“Keep a guard over your eyes and ears as the inlets of your heart, and over your lips as the outlet.”
Anne Bronte
“It is foolish to wish for beauty. Sensible people never either desire it for themselves or care about it in others. If the mind be but well cultivated, and the heart well disposed, no one ever cares for the exterior.”
Anne Bronte
“Our wishes are like tinder: the flint and steel of circumstances are continually striking out sparks, which vanish immediately, unless they chance to fall upon the tinder of our wishes; then, they instantly ignite, and the flame of hope is kindled in a moment.”
Anne Bronte
“It seems as if life and hope must cease together.”
Anne Bronte
“My heart is too thoroughly dried to be broken in a hurry, and I mean to live as long as I can.”
Anne Bronte
“I love the silent hour of night, For blissful dreams may then arise, Revealing to my charmed sight What may not bless my waking eyes.”
Anne Bronte
“The end of religion is not to teach us how to die, but how to live.”