We went out for a walk today. Since my surgery, my knee works so much better, and as Robin and I walked Lucy, I was almost bursting with energy. The air was cool, the neighbors had all poured out of their homes as we walked, then visited, then resumed walking again.

I love cool weather! It leaves me so energized and exuberant. Their was a soft breeze, and I reflected how this was the first day of the season that I could wear something besides a t-shirt. It brought back memories living in Texas, when hot weather would last so much longer, and on that first hint of fall, there would be a thrill that ran within.

As we walked the squirrels ran busily, gathering acorns and preparing for cold weather to come in another month or two. Tuesday are primary elections and I get my chance to cast a vote for change. In only two months, the general elections will be upon us. More immediately, Monday will be the fifth anniversary of 9-11. But I will not be preoccupied with fear, nor succumb to the negativity of these times. Rather, I shall focus on life, being alive today, and marvel at the creation which surrounds me and of which I am a part and parcel. All life is fleeting and temporary, and the best we can do is the best we can do, and immerse ourselves in this most precious passing moment. The most amazing things so often are the most basic and simple things after all, like a kiss from the one I love, or a sunrise, or a gentle breeze filled with the smells of seasonal change.

This morning I awoke, and lying next to me curled in a small ball formed against the curve of my body where the legs and torso meet, our small dog lay quietly asleep with a peace any human could only desire for themselves. My legs twitch and stir, and she stiffens her body, then turns over with paws up, the very tip of her tongue sticking ever so slightly out front and with lips curled in a way that she could only be experiencing the same exstacy of life itself. I softly rub her belly, and the smile becomes more pronounced, then she stretches, and the day begins. That puppy's love trumps terror any day of the year.