The Humanity

I think most of us in life have tried to do something nice for someone else at one time or another. I know I am one of those types of people that gets great joy in doing a good deed or saying a kind word. Has anyone else had it backfire on them?

To my surprise that is just what happened to me today. I saw an old friend the other day and thought that she looked so down and out...plain ol' depressed! I thought to myself 'you know you should do something for her.' After several days of thought I came up with the idea that I would buy the ingredients for a nice dinner and go to her house and prepare the meal and enjoy it with her. To my dismay I was so disappointed to find out that she thought I had alterior motives! Quite upsetting really.

Why are people so skeptical of someone trying to reach out to them? Is it because we have just become so hardened to the 'me first' society that we just assume everyone is out to get something only for themselves? Is it our prior experiences that has made mankind so unsure of a kind deed or being taken advantage of or perhaps that is the way we ourselves are that makes us that way? My conclusion is that it's likely a combination of both.

But what I want to say to anyone that reads this is: Pay it forward! If someone makes a kind gesture, just accept it for what it is and pay it forward. Seize the opportunity and let someone show kindness to you and gratefully accept it. Then take that kindness and make the opportunity for you to share it with someone else! It's the little things in life that make a big difference.

Man's (or Woman's) best friend

Today my father and I got a chance to enjoy the great outdoors once again. We set off for Big Lake in Grand Lake Stream. At the last minute I decided to take my Labrador Retriever Scout.

Scout is 5 months old and a beloved family member and future hunting dog. Scout loves children and like her breed, loves the water as well. As we were launching the Rangely Laker into the water Andrew was throwing a stick in the lake for Scout and she faithfully retrieved it each time and dropped it at his feet for more.

Next came the moment of truth. As I expected, Scout got in the boat and sat there like a hunting pro. Alert and attentive for the first 30 minutes she eventually decided to soak up the sun at the bottom of the boat where she spent most of the afternoon sleeping and occassionally waking up to check out the bass and yellow perch we were catching. I was quite happy to confirm my original thoughts that she would be a great dog in the boat. Scout is a great dog anyways!

We continue to work on several different commands. Next I will be purchasing a book to teach her (and myself) the various commands and techniques of hunting with a Champion pooch like our Scout.