“Thump!  Thump!  Thump!”  I say that to my favorite dog.  And his tail just wags faster and harder.  Tilla has had other names in the past:  the loveable mutt was first called Atilla The Hun, now shortened to Tilla.  Then the Olympian.  He the was the only dog athletic enough to clear our fence forcing us to build it higher the next year.  He tried then right away to go over but bounced right off it and did not try again.  He is a lovable rogue. I am sure he will earn other names as time goes by.  He is the same dog that never forgot being chained to the table twice when we were punishing him.  You can not keep a leash near him:  he will simply chew through it so leashes are kept out of his reach.  He never forgets.  Right now I feel sorry for him for he is limping slightly.  The vet says he has a torn tendon.  I am hoping we can correct that in the future.  Anyway, he is my dog.  I won him over by giving belly rubs almost any time he wants one and he loves his sporadic walks I give him.  I love him with all my heart and soul.  I never thought any dog would replace Daisy–a black mutt I had since she was a puppy but he has.  Dogs don’t live forever so I will enjoy him now.  Everything is by grace.

Every day I have to count my blessings.  It is so easy to take the bounty God has given you for granted.  At the moment I have four dogs.  You never know when they are going to outlive you.

Usually it is the opposite:  you outlive them but you never know.  Life is, indeed, very precious.  I am enjoying all four dogs at the moment.

There is Tilla who greets me every day eagerly.  He and I have a special relationship.  I never thought there would be another dog like Daisy who was the first dog I raised from a pup.  She usually did not take her eyes off of me.  I mourned when she died of cancer.

But then Tilla came along.  Unlike Daisy, he is eager to please, although a scoundrel.  We built an extension on our fence, at considerable expense, for he liked jumping it.  The only dog who could.

We had one visit from the local warden when one neighbor complained about one of his escapades.  I know he is only on loan to me, will not be around for ever.  I will enjoy him now.  He is a blessing.

There is his sister, the other pup we kept, Coco who is a real darling.  She has a real sweet personality although she can be quite insistent when she want to go out.  I know she is, also, on loan.

Life is very fleeting and I will enjoy these two dogs while I have them.  Nothing is forever.  And that includes my life too.  I will try to be appreciative of all my blessings.  Every thing is by grace.