1. Practice. Yoga, meditation, writing, and dog. I’m so glad that after a lot of years searching, I’ve settled into the things that work for me, happy that I can give up the seeking and go deeper, that I can work with staying instead.

2. Rain and cooler weather. The rain doesn’t need to come so fast, all in one day, but I love that things are still so green and it’s not so hot. I even wore socks the other day.

a tired dog is a good dog

3. Ringo. He’s growing up. I posted this on my Facebook page, so you may have already seen it, but if not,

It’s been exactly seven months since I first held him, that day at Sherry’s when we went to visit the puppies, when that one little boy that Lori told me about came over to me, sat himself down at my feet, looked up and demanded I give him my attention. I scooped him up and held him, and even though I didn’t tell anyone for a while and Sherry hadn’t decided yet which puppy was going home with us, I knew that he was the one.

And yet, there was resistance on my part. Puppies are hard and I’d just lost my Dexter, wanted him back more than I wanted another dog, Sam was sick and we didn’t know how to help him or if he’d be with us much longer, and Ringo was my most challenging puppy to date. It took some time. Part of the resistance was/is that having lost two of my boys, I know that the pain of losing them is equal to the measure that you love them. Silly me, I thought I could love this one a little less and save myself from hurting so much. It never works though.

Since we got him, Eric and I have been asking each other, “How much do you love him now, on a scale of 1 to 10?” I’ve been hovering at 8-9 for months, and then, at some point in the last 24 hours, and I’m not sure just when, which moment it was when I tipped, but I went to a full 10. I am seriously gone over this dude. He is MY dog.

4. Teaching yoga. I finish training next month, and already am scheduled to substitute teach two classes and have all kinds of ideas for other opportunities. Joyfear.

5. Another office move at CSU. Now there are lots of things not to like about having to move again so soon, but the thing I’m grateful for is that my office being in boxes, in transition, keeps me from going back to work early, which I have been known to do. This second move will keep me out of there for at least another week.

Bonus Joy: Sam still doing so well, peach pie, Susan Piver offering a writing and meditation retreat in December at Shambhala Mountain Center, books, a really good plumber and a small easy fix, catching up with friends, zero credit card debt, books and time to read them, returning to my regular yoga class after a six month absence, how Eric makes me laugh.

1. Dates scheduled with some of my favorite people. I missed them while I was gone and love that I’m going to get to catch up with what’s been going on with them for the past month.

2. Still being on vacation. One of the best things I ever did for myself is to renegotiate my position to a nine month contract. It cost me financially, but there’s no way to put a price on my sanity.
3. Vintage pillowcases, bees and bamboo, feather pillows and clean sheets.

4. A surprise marionberry pie. I thought I’d eaten my last piece, that all the berries where gone, and then Eric made another. It was like some kind of magic. Pie magic.

5. Ringo and Sam playing in the sprinkler. What do you do with two herding dogs when it’s almost too hot to play? Turn on the water.
5. Finally getting to sit down with the first issue of Mabel Magazine. I am still utterly amazed that this exists, gobsmacked that I got to be part of something so beautiful, so grateful to be in the company of so many amazing women.

Bonus Joy: My new mala, white sandalwood, which I’ve been wearing on my wrist to remind me that practice doesn’t just happen on the mat, on the cushion, on the page, or on the leash — practice is life.