Little piglet is enjoying the first fire of the season.

It’s not worth having a fire if the outside temperature is above 45o F outside.  This morning, it was 44o and raining.  It may warm up, but the rain makes it feel colder and I have to go out occasionally to check on the creek headwall.  Also, the first burn has a smell as dust burns off of the stove, so it’s best to crack the patio door.

The inside temperature is 75o, so Sparky could flop anywhere in comfort.  He likes the fire, and occasionally, like in the photo, does a half-wavelength tail wag.  If Sparky ever learns to speak English, I’d like to ask him why.  A floor wag can’t be comfortable. 

Dog behaviorists say that dogs wag their tails to signal their emotional state to other members of the pack.  Maybe, but why wag when nobody is around?  A person, alone, doesn’t laugh or smile nearly as much if something funny happens.

My theory is that God made dogs automatically wag their tails when they are content to keep them aware of the good times.  Dogs can’t count.  They see one or none.  If there is one food, then eat it.  If there is one rabbit, then chase it.  Dogs can’t count, so they can’t count their blessings.

People can choose to only acknowledge the dreary or irritating events in life.  If a person gets out of the car at Aldi, and a stranger offers them a cart, that’s a minor blessing.  The person can choose to see the stranger as too lazy to walk back to get their quarter, or as an unsolicited kindness.  People can choose to count their blessings or harbor a grudge against the universe. 

Dogs brains are not wired like that.  I don’t know how they work.  Maybe if Sparky hears thunder, he thinks, “yeah, this sucks, but my butt muscles are sore from all that tail wagging, so it’s been a pretty good day.”