POST 3 THE FEET OF BONDING, NO [SIC] NEEDED

Right now I am supposed to be doing work for a graduate course I am taking, and I am keyboarding away... bored, I look down at the rug below and see Socrates sleeping. He is right there under my chair, taking an afternoon nap. His head and front paws are down to my right and the rest of him, apparently, is under the chair on which I am sitting, as he’s not yet long enough to be showing on the other side—maybe this is as big as he’ll get?  I smile and feel good. There’s something that makes me breathe deep (ly) and feel content, knowing he has chosen this spot. He is not cloying; he’s not in my way. At the same time, he hasn’t chosen another more distant spot; he’s not in another corner of the room or somewhere else in the house. No. He chooses to be right at my feet, and sometimes he chooses, when awake, perhaps chewing on one of his “bones,” a desirable spot right ON my feet. His belly rests on my feet, shoed or not, as if he meant to make this clear: I prefer to be near you, right here, as I go about this job I have, this important gnawing assignment of mine.

Socs’ decisions about proximity, sleeping at my feet or being busy right on them, are clearly his own. Not learned, but chosen, I assume because he likes it that way. These “druthers” of his make me feel safe and content too.  This is the life (!)--mutualism (absolutely the most positive form of symbiosis, also known as “win-win”) between a pet and an owner, the genuine give and take and take and give are at the height of everyday living. Two symbionts, with a feeling that’s always there, in the background, but speaking volumes about why we’re together.  Maybe it’s even better than his overt puppy-like-overbearing shows of affection, although I love his nudging snout and little wet tongue too! This isn’t purposeful interaction. It’s just evident—just there when you choose to notice and even when you don’t choose consciously, I think it’s right at the back of your heart*, at the bottom of your breath--in and out. In my case, this too is the essence of corgi puppy and his person loyalty and love. Along with everything else that’s offered, this is the quiet joy of pets and their people. Just straight out real. No worries about doing something right or wrong. There’s no one to impress or feel foolish with. Guileless. Peaceful. Shared being.  Close.

Just being close.  

*”The Back of My Heart” is a country song by Randy Montana (2011) on its way up the country charts at the time of this writing