Week Six: Work Your Assets
It gets me every time.
The scene: Ricki sitting at her desk, typing away. She’s been there since 8:00 AM and hasn’t taken a break except for a quick lunch. Now it’s 2:30 PM and she’s deep in concentration.
Enter Zoey. Well, not “enter,” exactly, since she’s been sleeping on the floor by Ricki’s side for hours. But now she stirs, cranes her neck and stares at Ricki.
Ricki keeps typing, oblivious.
Zoey stands. She stretches briefly, arching her back into a vault of fur and pushes her front paws against the ground. She shakes, her collar chinking through the silence.
Ricki continues to type, staring at the screen.
Zoey pivots to face her. Zoey sits, eyes riveted.
Nothing.
A tiny whine escapes Zoey’s muzzle. It’s soft and quiet, like air escaping from a plastic bag (for those of us who still possess plastic bags).
Ricki: [without looking at the pup]: I’m working, honey. We’ll go soon. [She continues to write.]
Zoey huffs, emitting a whoosh of air that Ricki can feel on her leg.
A few seconds elapse. Zoey glances to the left, then to the right.
And then, she approaches. Stealthily, silently, like snowflakes accumulating on the windowsill, she inches closer, then lays her head on Ricki’s thigh.
. . . Aaaahhhnd, I’m done. Gets me every time.
Your dog’s head on your lap? I mean, what could be more irresistible? Whenever Zoey does this, I am compelled to stop what I’m doing, look her in the eyes and caress her head.
And the expression she gives! There is nothing more solicitous, more yearning, more oxytocin-generating than the saucer eyes of a dog pleading to be taken out on a walk.
And believe me, Zoey is well aware of that fact.
She knows how to work her assets, that’s for sure. And affection is definitely one of them.
When we first got Zoey and she began to express her insatiable desire for affection, I literally couldn’t believe my eyes. You see, our other two dogs, Elsie and Chaser–while sweet and perfectly willing to accept OUR affection–had no desire to engage in usual canine antics such as requesting pats, cozying up to you as you watch TV, slipping their head beneath your hand while it rests on the couch, and so on.
At the time, we chalked it up to their particular mix of breeds: Elsie was a lab-border collie cross, and Chaser a border collie-shepherd. In other words, dogs designed to work (especially, to work at a distance from their owners) were likely more independent and accustomed to being just a tad aloof with their humans, right?
But Zoey is so different as to make me wonder how much of those traits were breed-specific and how much were dog-specific. And how much was learned.
What might have begun as a random act of suckiness (laying her head on my lap when she wanted to play) has turned into a regular, multiple-times-per-day occurrence, whenever she feels bored, lonely, restless, itchy, hungry, curious, playful, affectionate or any other emotion.
I have to admit, I don’t mind. Even in my moments of deepest concentration, even when my mind is trained on the email before me, even when I’ve just reprimanded her for barking at the FedEx truck across the street, that head-on-the-lap move melts my innards and I am compelled by some overpowering impulse to stroke her head.
That solid, wide skull–covered in silken fur–and those velvety ears! How could I possibly resist? It gives me comfort, too, and (as we know) lowers my blood pressure. So why not succumb and make us both happy?
What’s most important in this exchange, however, is that Zoey knows her own influence. She’s well aware that this is the only way she can acceptably interrupt my work. She is supremely confident in her ability to draw my attention away from whatever it is I’m focused on and to her melting stare. And she knows not to push it too often.
Now, wouldn’t it be marvelous if we humans had that same certitude when it came to our own positive attributes? If we knew just how attractive, alluring, smart, competent, efficient, productive, creative, inspiring and awesome we truly are?
So, for one week starting now, let’s work our assets.
People tell you you’re funny? Be shamefully hilarious. Have others remarked that you bake a mean chocolate chip cookie? Bake away–and feel confident giving those cookies as gifts. Have you been admired for your ability to make people feel comfortable and welcome in your home? This is the week to invite guests over and lavish them with your charms.
Let’s make this week a good one–filled with our unique gifts and abilities that we don’t acknowledge even half as much as we should. No more humility, folks–go out and let them see what you’ve got.
Follow up to last week’s challenge: Begin the Day with Some Movement.
There’s no doubt, Qi Gong is definitely the exercise-cum-meditation for me. I mean, how can you go wrong with a pose called “Knocking on the Door of Life”? (In this case, you stand tall, let your arms hang loosely and swivel your torso side to side as your arms flap in opposite directions, one in front and one in back).
I love the simplicity, the gracefulness, the precision and the energy of Qi Gong movements. From bouncing in place as a way to ground yourself and energize, to rotating from the hips and waist, these exercises provide everything I could have wanted in a practice to move my body and restore my mind. I felt as if my muscles were awakened each morning, then challenged and strengthened by the poses.
Qi Gong also requires a certain degree of concentration to get it right and to keep it going, something my tired brain appreciated in those early hours of the day as well.
I took a few daytime breaks to stretch from top to bottom, arching my back and then cat-stretching while hanging onto our bannister. Really felt great.
And while I did manage a full-body stretch before getting out of bed each morning, I wasn’t quite as animated as our dear Zoey when she writhes and twerks her bum in the air. And I may have scared the Hubs with my exuberant grunts and yawps.
But otherwise, a smashing success.
Now you:
Tell me what you do to move in the morning. How did the past week go?
What is your favorite form of movement? Why?
Do you have a pet whose natural movements intrigue you? Do share.