"Pay attention!!!"

Back when our dog Bela was in training with lots of other dogs, the trainer told us that what we should do when we jerk on the choke collar (Bela's has spikes that go into his neck as well as the 'give' to choke him a bit--the trainer stopped the class one night and told these people with huge dogs, "see that Puli there? there's more Dog in him than in any of these other dogs...."

Alas, he was right! Our Puli, Bela is a DOG-DOG.

And what we're supposed to say when we choke and hurt him is this: "Pay Attention!!!"

Not a bad thing for each of us to say to ourselves every day.

My computer is on a desk we've had for, Lord knows, 30 years or more. It has two desk drawers and they are like the place where things go to hide. I go through them and find things I've forgotten--a picture of my father with four of his nephews before I was born...stuff like that.

Today I was 'paying attention' to the stuff in my desk's drawers and came across something I don't remember at all but which must have meant a lot to me at some point in my life.

It was a plastic, white heart about the size of a silver dollar (for anyone whose ever seen a silver dollar). On one side is a picture of my daughter, Mimi, now 36 and newly married, blonde and blue-eyed sucking on a sippy-cup. On the other side is a picture of my son, Josh, 39 now with three daughters, blonde, looking down, probably 4 1/2 with Mimi 1 1/2 in the two pictures.

Both pictures, I'm sure, were taken in our house at 42 Hazelwood Avenue in Charleston, WV, where both Josh and Mimi were born.

I had forgotten it and put it in a desk drawer for probably almost 3 decades and I found it tonight.

I intend to carry it with me now and forever (or until I drop dead from not paying attention!) How could I have neglected and forgotten such a precious thing for so long?

I need to 'pay attention!!!" more.

Maybe I need a choke collar.

Ask me, when you see me, to see that white plastic heart with two of the loves of my life pictured there.

I'm trying to pay attention....