It’s that time of the year when humans reflect on the past year. Eventually, the humans I live with bring everything into perspective, feeling a profound sense of gratitude for what they have, rather than dwelling on what they lack.

At times, Nancy becomes incredibly frustrated with herself for not losing those extra pounds and not making time to practice her saxophone and bassoon.  Until I remind her to put everything in perspective.  Yes, I do that by crawling into her lap on the floor and gazing deeply into her soul. Call it strange, but if you haven’t loved a dog like she loves me, then you simply haven’t experienced true love.

Think about this.   I don’t reminisce ever about my show dog days because it would only make me feel sad that I don’t get to see Jill anymore, my breeder.   That isn’t even including how well she groomed me because our appearance is so trivial compared to what is inside of us.  Yup, even for dogs!   This leads me to tell you NOT to make those silly resolutions for the New Year, because often you set yourself up for failure in those human minds of yours.

Now that I’ve presented all of the above, I’ll say that I’ll try to encourage Nancy to be more social this coming year. Dog people tend to be content spending time with their dogs rather than with people. I say it like I see it!

Perhaps that’s why so many musicians have dogs. We find joy in their company while they dedicate hours to practice. I believe 2026 will be a significantly better year than the previous one. While losing weight and practicing aren’t prerequisites for happiness, I certainly wouldn’t mind Nancy attempting to achieve those goals once again.