Listen to your BARK!

It was a longer drive than expected from Ruffin to Myrtle Beach, but we made it and Freedom couldn’t be happier about all the new experiences. But before I get into that…a quick recap of my visit to Ruffin!

I told ya I was on my way to visit John, and old buddy from the US Navy who I went to school with in San Diego, and ultimately on to the White House. John was a very gracious host…offered me food, electricity, friendship and fun. He even gave me a nice stand to set up as my charging dock for my phone and helped fix a little leak I found in one of my water lines.

It was fun reminiscing with John about our days back then in school and traveling around the President. We did different rotations of duty within the White House, so we didn’t get to work side by side much. John pulled out a few photos he had of me back in my young, geeky, showing the shnoz off slender days :

Thank you John for the memories. Many of the crazy things we got to see and experience were firsts for this New Hampshire Kid. (Especially Tijuana lol!)

I got thinking on our drive to Myrtle about the curve of firsts in a persons life. When we’re young, of course most things we experience are “Firsts”…but as we get older and into our careers and family life, the firsts fall off dramatically. I was very fortunate for my 15 years at the NH Food Bank…the job brought me a lot of firsts mixed within all the routine. It in fact was one of the reasons I enjoyed the job so much as there was always something new around the bend to do. Do you get enough firsts in your diet?

As we drove I turned on my google music which is quite the eclectic collection of songs and artists and this song came on https://youtu.be/xwPnSS702Ow . (Jacob Collier is a musical genius look at some of his other stuff on YouTube, this is actually a Cold Play song…put some headphones on and listen to it distraction free, It’s quite powerful) I kept looking in my rear view mirror at that handsome pup on the back seat who was sleeping away…once in a while he would feel the breeze across his face and lift his head without closing his eyes just to put it more into the wind. This song reminds me of the hidden meanings of why I wanted my new best friend and ultimately…what he helps do for me.

Spend some time today thinking about all firsts YOU’VE experienced in life. They don’t have to be spelunking in Belize or having sex with a rock star back stage…they just need to be yours. I have more firsts to come

I look forward to guiding Freedom through all of his firsts as he grows up and helps me keep collecting mine. I hope that I can continue to offer him those as much as he can tolerate:)

Here’s Freedoms first step in the Ocean!