Last night I asked my dog if she were ever gonna get to NYC.
I knew she wouldn’t answer, but I asked anyway.
We were in the midst of our nightly routine. She was using her paws to try to get underneath the blankets on my bed, and even though I offered her help (like I do every night), she demanded to do it alone. That independent ass bitch. God, I love her.
But last night, while she was struggling to wiggle her little body underneath my horrendous blue quilt (I had no part in picking out that color), she stopped for a few minutes and just looked at me.
That’s when I suffocated her with my embrace and nestled my head into her neck, my favorite spot, and I asked her my rhetorical question.
Let me make it very loud and clear that Rosie, my English Bulldog, is not in any way, shape, or form held back from adventuring. She’s been to the beach, the airport, friends and family’s houses, the dog park, and plenty of other places. There are times I put her in the backseat of my car at the end of the day and drive around with the windows down just because I know she loves car rides. Nothing excites her more.
Except, a dog doesn’t really need all that, ya know. She has her usual spot on the couch, the mulch in the front yard, the deck in the back, and an entire king size bed that she is not afraid to take advantage of. She gets to wait underneath our stools at the kitchen island for crumbs that fall from our dinner plates, and she gets to share the yolk of an egg with any family member who eats them hardboiled for breakfast.
In short, Rosie has a damn good life. Everyday is an adventure for her. She doesn’t need to go to NYC and stand in the middle of Times Square to feel alive. All she needs is for someone to crack an egg on the countertop or drop a piece of chicken from their plate for her to love life.
NYC is not my favorite place on earth. It’s not even close. I like NYC, to a degree, but I don’t love it. Never have and probably never will.
But NYC has this massiveness to it that is undeniable. It is larger than life. It oozes opportunity and adventure. You can find any walk of life, any cuisine, anything at all there. It’s incredulous, actually. Every time I’m there I’m reminded of how much is out there in the world. It makes me feel so small but in the best way possible. Sometimes I find myself falling in love with being lost in a sea of people who don’t know me or even notice me. It’s liberating, almost, to be reminded of your insignificance in a way that lends freedom to be exactly who you want to be. NYC never fails to do that for me.
So, when I asked Rosie if she were ever gonna get to NYC, I didn’t mean, “Are you gonna go your whole life missing out on riding a crowded, smelly subway and eating at a 24-hour diner?”
I meant, “How can I learn to live my life like you— without feeling the need to be submerged in a sea of larger than life moments to feel alive?”
To be honest, I don’t really know. I find so much value in the small, quiet moments of life, but there is no denying that I crave the big adventures, too. I want to do wild, crazy things like live with a tribe in Africa, island hop in Indonesia, practice silence with monks in India, ride in a submarine off the coast of who knows where, and so much more. I can’t imagine having the desire to just stay put and stick to the status quo. That is so far from who I am.
I suppose one of the reasons Rosie was brought to me was to teach me that an adventure doesn’t always have to be crazy. It can be at home, with the people you love. It can be at dusk with the windows down, cruising around town. It can be anything really.
Rosie has a lot of really fun, cool adventures under her belt. She’s had a kickass life so far, and I have every intention of only making it better. But amongst all the adventures she’s had, I can’t help but think about her favorite one. The one that brings her more joy than anything… being with all of us at once. Laying in our laps and being smothered with love.
So, if you never get to NYC, don’t worry. The island in your kitchen might not be representative of Times Square, but if you have love around your countertops, you have everything you need.
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