My dog and I were walking down the street on an 80-degree day. He was exploring every single blade of grass he could find with his nose. He’s always been a very active dog, but as he’s gotten older he has slowed down (my family tries to spoil him so he can enjoy his life). I was wearing my volleyball gear, ready for another day of volleyball camp, which I needed to leave for in 10 minutes. 

Buddy was the last one to be walked, he needed shorter walks than my other dog so I often walked him last as a cooldown walk for me. As the minutes crept towards 3:00, I started to get more impatient with the pace of our walk. Urging him along, wondering why I had to be the one to walk them both when my sister was sitting in her room on TikTok, I pulled him away from the blade of grass he was assaulting with his nose and continued our walk. We got to the end of our street and I pivoted him in a circle and started to walk home. 

On my way back, he targeted a bush, then a rock, then flowers, then the dirt, sniffing basically what seemed to be anything that he could come across within a 10-step distance.  “Let’s go bud,” I muttered, trying not to be forceful as he was practically a senior citizen. He looked at me as if accusing me of taking his favorite bone since I had the audacity to rush him during his nature walk. The minutes ticked down rapidly, leaving me getting more pushy to walk towards our driveway. Seeming to want to aggravate me more, Buddy slowed down ever so slightly forcing me to give him a longer leash. For an old dog, he was shockingly strong. Buddy, my now life coach, just kept moving on his merry way. Even if I attempted to rush to get home, he was happy to be there and outside at peace with the world. Almost snail-like, we slowly moved towards the driveway. In the end, he got a cookie; as he’s been conditioned into believing he needs one after he does anything or even when someone walks through the front door. 

Thankfully, I made it to the camp on time with 2 minutes to spare. But after I reflected on the day, I realized that I should start to enjoy time with him more, as who knows how many more times I can take him on walks. Not much later, my mom said to me, “He’s old, so the most we can do now is just make sure he has a good life.” I realized that’s what Buddy was doing on his walk, enjoying life like there's no tomorrow and slowing down the world so time doesn’t feel like it's slipping away. We all need a Buddy, we need someone to remind us that time doesn’t stop and that it’s important that we take breaks from our crazy schedules, so we can enjoy the small moments. Now when I see him outside, just standing there, staring at who knows what, I know that he was trying to slow down at that moment. Our modern world is so fast-paced, that a walk may just be what you need to help slow down your life and just enjoy the peace of both nature and of life.