but then again, there are some cool people, too

the whole dog thing has got me thinking about a similar incident last summer.

we live on one of the main streets of our neighborhood. the side streets kind of branch off of our street. it seems like every stray dog figures this out at some point and winds its way past our house during its own little Incredible Journey. most of the time they won't come to me, but when they will, i do my best to get them home.

one evening last summer i came home from work around dusk. i got out of the car and glanced across the street and saw a white dog lying up against my neighbor's privacy fence, near the curb, panting hard. i didn't have to get very close to see that the dog was old and exhausted. he was not wearing a collar, and he couldn't even stand up to make it across the street to my back yard.

i took him some water and then called the local police department to see if anyone had reported a lost dog. i figured that--worst case scenario--he'd be better off spending a few nights in the animal shelter than fending for himself.

the dispatcher asked me to describe the dog and she said that someone had reported a dog missing that matched the exact description. she took down my address and told me that she would notify the owners.

i hovered around the front door keeping an eye on the fellow, and within five minutes a woman pulled up in a volvo station wagon with a couple of kids around 10 or 12 years old. they bounded out of the car and gently loaded the dog up in the back. they were elated to see him. i stepped out onto the driveway long enough to wave to them and tell them that i was happy he was going home.

i went back into the house and about thirty minutes later i was on the phone with J--who was out of town for business--when the doorbell rang. this is completely unusual.

i opened the door and the two kids were there with a package of fresh cookies from the local grocery story and a bouquet of flowers. they thanked me for saving their dog, and the older one gushed about how she'd had the dog her whole life and they had been so worried about him and then she hugged me. i was flattered by the unnecessary gesture, but i know it made the kids feel good to do something reciprocal. not to mention that their parents must be raising them right.

the whole situation made my heart swell a little, and it's those intangible rewards that make the effort worth it even when it seems so unworthwhile, like today.

and i'm not even a dog person.