Canine Morning Glory

Lexi Lisa and Linus
September 25, 2005


Sunday morning greetings between two canines and a dark eyed lady

Lexi has taken her owner Lisa for a walk in the park this beautifully bright Sunday morning. There are meditative exercises being performed by a group of early rising seniors. The la terrazzo style fountain is gushing volcanic-like with sparkling clear water. The sound of splashing water gives a feeling of serenity to the morning setting.

Lexi is a small white puffy haired dog with a pink collar and a reserved attitude. She’s curious about her surroundings and loves initiating conversation with other pedigrees. She’ll tire quickly of her newly found friends and seems to always be in a search and discover mode.

A small pug looking canine was the first to witness Lexi’s cunning self-serving ways. Lexi’s owner Lisa spied the little pug as he eyed Lexi from across the plaza past the fountain. The pug, whose name is CornNut, strolled confidently over and introduced himself to Lexi. After much sniffing and canine communicating the two frolicked underneath the bench that Lisa sat on. The male owner of CornNut conversed with Lisa for a bit as we all enjoyed watching the two canines interplay.

While in the middle of playing with CornNut and appearing to tire of his macho ways Lexi senses another male canine eager to communicate and give attentions to her feminine fur. It’s obvious that Lexi has already tired of CornNut and is giving this new plaid sweater wearing male interest her undivided attentions.

Though he’s not as masculine as CornNut he’s got the spunk and spirit that turns Lexi into a trotting fairy princess. His owner, an older Asian lady with animal doctoring skills, begins sharing with us the history of this playful miniature chihuahua named Linus.

Linus was a rescue from the south bay animal shelter. He came very close to being euthanized upon his arrival at the shelter. Doctors at the shelter believed that Linus had been ill treated or neglected by a former owner or possibly dropped by careless kids. The prior treatment of Linus had left him handicapped in his front legs. Doctors told Linus new owner that it was his lively spirit that told them Linus had a good chance of survival, and so they nursed his wounds and let nature’s way heal the rest. Linus may not be able to walk more than half a block at a time, but he can play within a given range for hours.

As Lexi became the trophy of Linus’s affections CornNut was left to wait and wonder just how a small brown taco bell looking Chihuahua could steal his newfound love interest away with such ease. Once CornNut’s owner saw that the competition had a stronghold on Lexi’s attention he kindly wished everyone a good day and urged CornNut homeward. CornNut didn’t seem to mind leaving and probably would thank his owner later for the dignity saving departure.

So with CornNut out of the picture Linus had a clear unobstructed path to Lexi’s cuddling character. But just as quickly as Lexi turned her attentions away from CornNut she abandoned her play with Linus to seek other canine mysteries. Linus was persistent and wouldn’t let Lexi off the hook so easily.

In the meantime Linus owner continued to narrate the trials and tribulations of poor Linus. For it was only a week ago that a larger dog of cocker spaniel breed snatched up small Linus and tried to eat him like he was an afternoon puppy dog snack. Linus was left with a puncture near his eye and nightmares of his early years abuse. The incident triggered a relapse of Linus’s fear of males both canine and human. But Linus rebounding spirit allowed him to overcome the trauma and bounce back to his loving and trusting ways.

Linus not only displayed his affections toward Lexi but also acknowledged the human hands that reached to pet and scratch at his shorthaired brown body. With Lexi beginning to show a mood of wanting to be left alone, Lisa her owner picks her up and sets Lexi on the bench with her. We believe Lexi was a bit jealous of Linus receiving all the human attention, but whose to say what feelings cross the conscious of such a calculating character as we find in Lexi. Lexi has the cunningness of a cat and the slyness of a snake. But she’s loveable as Lisa attests to when she cuddles her upon Linus’s departure.

A dog lover at heart, Lexi brings a caring parental smile to Lisa that’s proof of their inseparable bond. And so with a kind heart and caring voice Lisa wishes me well as she and Lexi stroll away toward a day of pampering one another. I believe it won’t be the last I see of Lisa and Lexi. When blessings come in ways such as these the recipient of its gift can only look forward to the next encounter and give thanks for being in the right place at a most delightful time.

Lisa being a native of Rhode Island brought a familiar kinship to our morning conversation. After talks of yoga, eastern philosophies and the beauty of San Francisco, we found ourselves partners in receiving the morning magic. Maybe it was her Italian look and traits that produced images of home in my mind. Either way I’ll keep an eye out for Lisa when I stroll around the Italian la terrazzo plaza in mornings to come. For home is where the heart is and where friendships are discovered. But that’s a different story reserved for human relations. Today’s stage was set for canine performers and they delivered to their audience in a glorious way.