This past week our sweet old Yorkie-Poo Daryl. He was “our other brother” Daryl and he was over 15 years old.
He ruled the roost here and was so well- loved. After we said a tearful goodbye, I began to think about all of the lessons he had taught me. And then hearing from our family, texts and Facebook comments a few themes seemed to rise to the top.
I know I will think of more right after I publish this post, but here is part 1, at least- Life Lessons from Daryl.
- And this EVERYONE agrees with. Don’t ever give up, be persistent, ask for what you want and if you don’t get it quickly enough, ask louder! Especially at breakfast and dinner time.
- Be resilient. Every time we thought he was down for the count, he rebounded. He was strong in living a full life, despite the pain he must have been in constantly for a long time. If you don’t make it up the step, back up and try again. Crash landing? Just get up and carry on.
- Have a routine that includes everything you love. Daryl’s recipe was lots of rest, good food, keeping a lookout, keeping the other dogs in line, playing and lots of it, more sleeping, be outside as much as possible- he went crazy when we would say “Daryl! Do you want to go for a walk?!” and definitely begging for our food- loudly. Daryl lived full out.
- Save room for a squirt of whipped cream or a slice of American cheese! Daryl could hear these things even before squirting or crinkling the paper. He never missed out on a good treat.
- Cuddle with people you love as much as possible. He would finally fully relax at night when he knew everyone was settling down and accounted for.
Pick a lesson and work with it this week. What can expand in your own life?