Many mornings I take my dog, Finn, for a walk to a field by my house so that he can chase balls or frisbees and "get his ya-ya's out". It's a nice time to enjoy the morning and a cup of coffee and being with Finn. Adding to the enjoyment though is the fact that nearly every morning we get a little wake up call that always brings a smile to my face.
I hear them coming from miles away, a steady cadence of "awooo! awooo! awooo! awooo!" The sound is faint at first and then it grows louder. The car nears, windows open, with a Bassett Hound in the back seat, his nose pointed at the sky through the window, his ears flying in the wind. He is baying. And baying. And baying. With a slow, steady, marching beat he is baying. And then the car turns, makes its way down a local street, and the incessant baying slowly reduces in volume and eventually drifts away.
After a visitation like this I often wonder how loud the sound must be in the car, but the driver seems unperturbed. I wonder what her story is - she appears like clockwork, as if on the way to work in the morning. Does the dog accompany the driver to work? Are they going to drop the dog off at doggy daycare because, well, he'll bark and bark and bark if left at home? Does the dog bark the entire time he is in the car? Always?
I have too many questions, but they are fun to wonder about. Maybe though, like me and my Finn, the driver and her dog simply have a morning ritual that they enjoy together involving not balls and frisbees and fields, but a car, an open window, and a joyous noise.
But most mornings I forget my questions, and I just stop and smile and savor the moment.
Research has shown that the act of savoring - or the active and intentional act of focusing on, fully feeling, enjoying, and extending our positive experiences - is an ingredient associated with higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction. Taking just a few minutes a day to savor something positive, awe-inspiring, or funny can add greatly to your quality of life.
I call this happening my morning "savoring wake-up-call" because it reminds me to set aside my thinking and planning for the day and just stop, watch the car, listen to the dog's song, and smile (and maybe shake my head a little). It's an opportunity to savor - not the flowers or my gratitudes or the three good things that happened to me yesterday (all great things to savor otherwise) - but life's little absurdities.
We have been reminding ourselves to "stop and smell the flowers" for ages - and flowers should indeed be savored. But what about the things that make us go "huh?" What about the teenager in line behind me in the grocery store the other day wearing a full shark suit and rocking it so confidently? The lady dressed from head to toe in an angel costume on the ferry - her feathered wings bending her wire halo a bit when she sat down. The gal who approached the huge glass window at a restaurant recently and bared her breasts, laughing at the shocked responses. And this patient, long-suffering Basset Hound owner (or lover of dog opera for all I know) - making their way down the road every morning to a certain rhythmic canine accompaniment. All adding a certain, "je-ne-sais-quoi" to the day.
These moments deserve notice and celebration (or disbelief in the case of the restaurant window), and, yes, savoring, just as much as the sunrise or the rose blossom. It seems like a good insurance policy for those days when the flowers are hard to find. We shall never run out of things to savor if, along with the beautiful and amazing, we add anything that makes us smile, out of humor, enjoyment, or disbelief to our savoring repertoire.
So, Finn and I will continue to savor our Basset friend's symphony, as he himself savors the open window, the cool morning air, and the raising of his voice to meet the day. Ah life...isn't it grand?
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