Pay Attention

Every morning I follow a ritual as inevitable as the rising of the sun and a hot cup of coffee (one Splenda and a splash of cream, please). Reaching into a wicker basket that sits beside the front door, I pick up two leashes and attach them to Toby and Moe, the little mutts who have been in charge of our home for almost a decade. 

Out the door we go, and “neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays us from the completion of our appointed rounds.” These rounds include the pups “doing their business,” of course, but there is also a necessary and enlightening bit of exercise. The exercise is for all of us, and the enlightening is my own, for my canine pals always teach me a lesson: Pay attention to your world. 

The three of us can walk for half an…