Naptime

      It is a typical day and she is lying beside me on my couch that is covered with a dark denim slipcover. The wooden fan overhead is turning counter clockwise and circulating the air in the living room and blowing her soft blonde fur back and forth like a swaying wheat field. The light breeze brushes her white and blonde fur up against her sensitive ears. The television sitting on the wooden entertainment center is the biggest nuisance during her beauty rest because of its constant sounds from today’s episode of Oprah echoing loudly throughout the room. She seems to be sleeping soundly, but every minute noise alerts her and instantly her pointed ears stand upright with full attention. She slowly begins to lift her head and slightly open her dark brown eyes to see what exactly has disturbed her slumber. Sometimes she is alarmed by the noise and will suddenly awaken and be ready to defend her territory, like a soldier approaching battle. When she realizes it was just the television, she lies her head back down and drifts back into peaceful dreams. I turn down the television so she can sleep in serenity and I attempt to sit as motionless as possible so I won’t disturb her. She then falls back into a deep sleep and I observe her paws jerking as if she is running a race in her dream. I laugh to myself as her paws twitch and I imagine her dreaming about running in an open field chasing bright yellow butterflies or perhaps she is dreaming of endless doggie bones thrown at her feet. She is just a puppy so her little episodes of beauty sleep are actually power naps so she will be energized and ready to play. As the fan blows her sensitive white whiskers, the two nostrils at the tip of her dark black nose flare in and out as if she is annoyed. She begins to toss from one side to the other and tries to get comfortable in the cold, loud, and agitating living room. Each time she moves, a bell like ring is made from the silver bone shaped I.D. tag hanging from her neck on her bright pink collar. She can’t seem to get situated, so she decides to end her nap and jump off of the couch onto the floor. She stretches her short legs and neck and I read her mind as she walks to the back door. I take her outside and she walks me around the yard while sniffing the grass in hopes of finding the perfect spot to relieve herself. She leads me back into the house and I give her a doggie bone to reward her for doing her business in the grass outside. She takes the bone to the couch, lies back down and munches on it, drifts back into siesta, and the process begins all over again.