Monday, March 8, 2010

Happy 8th Birthday to Max

Every year, I struggle to put into words what Max means to me.  Imagine, if you will, a person in your life, if you are lucky enough to have one, who gets you, really really gets you, more than anyone else.  Someone who knows exactly how to make you laugh and who can make you cry by the mere thought of them being in pain or unhappy.  Someone who you can just look at and read each other’s minds, you know each other that well.  You don’t always see eye to eye but in the heart, where it counts, you are one.  That’s Max for me.

He is not the perfect conformation dog.  He is not the perfect agility dog.  He is certainly not the perfect obedience dog. LOL!  But we’ve had success in each venue because we are both stubborn and we work well as a team.  Max is a study in contrasts.  The days where he was alternately humping my leg, lunging at the other beardies, and barking at me while waiting outside the show ring were the days he showed like a million bucks and walked away with the win.  The agility courses that I think are completely impossible are the ones he nails and then looks at me as if to say, “You got all worked up over THAT?”  My most barky dog outside the house is the only one who tiptoes around when we want to sleep in and dares not disturb us.  He is like velcro to me in the agility ring, and wants nothing to do with me when I let him run loose on the high school field.

I have a hard time believing there was life before Max, for what kind of life must that have been?  By the same token, I am firmly in denial that there will ever be a life after Max.  It’s simply not possible for my brain to comprehend.

And so, on this 8th day of March, I wish the first love of my life a very happy birthday and remind him again that I expect to celebrate many many more with him.

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I think I will end with this one every year.  It’s us in a nutshell.

molly

19 comments:

SWTrigal said...

That is so awesome Molly. What a great dog Max is!

D said...

You look like a teenager in the first picture! Of course, you still pretty much do (ewwwww Jeff! :P).

I can't tell you how happy I get when I hear about true dog people having barky, nutty dogs. I may have a new friend with a few days a week that won't. stop. barking. Your description of Max's inside vs. outside personality strikes me as very similar. Too bad I don't get indoor Fergus ever :)

Happy Birthday to both of you!!

Meera said...

Happy Birthday, Max!

Iron Krista, "The Dog Mom" said...

Just catching up on blogs. Happy birthday to both your pups. Max sounds just like my baxter.... I can't imagine life without him....

beardies3 said...

Half sister Kendra sends Max special hugs. We all do here at beardies3. We all love Max with his quiet, mature demeanor inside and especially love that he can let loose and play like a puppy outside.

I remember him watching you take off for a bike ride at our house. He sat at the door until you were long out of sight. Then he rested until about 5 minutes before you returned. He was back at the door patiently waiting for you. He didn't whine; he patiently waited for his Molly. I adore that boy too.

GoBigGreen said...

Happy Birthday Max! Lovely Post Molly.

Charisa said...

Ohhhhhh love him!! Happy Birthday Max!

Marit C-L said...

Happy Birthday to Max!! What a GREAT "puppie". Love that last picture... awesome!

Runner Leana said...

Happy birthday Max!!! Love all of those pictures. He is such a gorgeous dog!!

jennabul said...

Happy birthday to Maxie =). Awesome boy.

Melissa said...

Love that last picture especially! Max sounds like a one-in-a-million doggie :-)

San said...

happy birthday to Max. The first and the last pic are tooo cute.

Kathleen said...

I loved reading your post. I had my "son" (Cocker Spaniel) Colby for 16.5 years and I totally felt and still do feel the same way about him as you do about Max.
I wish you many, many more wonderful years together :)

That'll Do said...

Lovely lovely post. You & Max are an inspiring, beautiful team. Happy Birthday to one of the all time great dogs.
D

Scott said...

Happy Birthday Max!!!

Sadie and I are just the same. I don't remember life before her and can't imagine life without her. They are fuzzy angels, if you ask me.

ShirleyPerly said...

Aw, such a sweet post. Happy Birthday, Max!

Unknown said...

A late but very happy golden birthday (8 on the 8th) to your precious Max! Your eloquence brought me to tears.

I've seen with my own eyes that Max is every bit as devoted to you as you are to him.

Randy Egge said...

I know what you mean about Max. The love between a dog and a person is a very special thing. I am lucky to have Barclay the Westie and Chico the Chihuahua, who both add so much to my life. Barclay is like Max in a way with his alpha dog characteristics. Enjoy your dogs!

Bob Mitera said...

Molly, I love your picture with Max (the black and white). We are taking tons of pictures of Greta growing up.