Beauty 365 … Stories of Love and Life for Everyday

Eight years ago, when one of our sons was small (was he really small once?), shy (long gone), and very cute (still very cute, just in a teenagerish sort of way), he begged for a dog.

His big, sad, blue eyes did the trick, and into our home and hearts came Bilbo Lawrence, our golden retriever (pictured, and yes, he barracks for Hawthorn).

Bilbo was named after the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, from the novel, The Hobbit, a family favourite. Bilbo Baggins is depicted as adventurous, brave, and determined. Hmmm…

Innocent folk may assume that a dog with the word ‘retriever’ in its breed title, will retrieve a ball. Not Bilbo. Maybe he is more ‘golden’ and less ‘retriever’!?

But our Bilbo has other positive qualities. As you can see, he is very handsome. He has a sweet temperament and he basically loves everybody.

Day 26, and Bilbo is loving our new lock-down life. Primarily, we are almost all here, almost all of the time, and, other than food (he is a Lawrence after all!), he loves company more than anything. He is just content to sit quietly by our sides pining for a pat or a food spill to pounce upon.

Also, more people in the house means more walks. These days, having a dog by your side legitimises you being on the street, so our dog-walking roster is being embraced with more enthusiasm than usual. More people out walking the streets means more mingling with other doggie friends. What bliss!

Bilbo is not looking forward to the end of our lock-down life. Between you and me, he told me so himself. I do hope he’s not going crazy!!