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What's a cat lover doing on a dogs' park?
Let's start at the beginning. Yesterday was just a regular Wednesday for me, quiet, didn't have much planned, until my uncle texted to see if I was up for an evening hike. After reviewing both my physical and emotional state and weighing options and courses of action, I said yes. We agreed to meet at around 5 p.m., after his workday was done, to take a hiking route which I like very much and happens to be relatively close to his workplace.
By 4 p.m. I was pretty much done with my own commitments for the day, so I chose to take the subway to the metro station closest to the area. Perhaps I should add that taking the subway here in VE is a rather unpleasant task, something I don't do unless I really have to, but the cash I had on hand at the moment was going to be enough only for the trip back home, at night. A choice was made and luckily I managed to avoid most of the unpleasantness.
After getting out of the subway, I walked for a few blocks, about ten or so, up to the mountain's foothill. Again, I could have taken the bus, but no cash, so I decided to look at the bright side and take it as a nice warm-up. El Ávila, the national park that borders the city of Caracas, is conveniently close enough for one to go on impromptu hikes. Not every park entry is safe or located in safe surroundings, so one has to know where to go, when, and how to do so.
I arrived at the mountain's foothill at 4:30 p.m. Half an hour early, which made my uncle cringe a bit. I told him to worry not, because I'd intended to get re-acquainted with a nearby site while I waited for him, a place I hadn't visited in about ten years. It's a dogs' park, but back then it had a nice public library going on. There, we (the members of my mother's ONG) hosted a few events back in the day.
So I entered the dogs' park and walked around for a bit. Greeted the security guard with a shy smile, and made my way to my bench. The very one my younger self used to sit in while listening to Manchester Orchestra. It's crazy how some things don't seem to change much, yet we are never the same person as the day before. Our essence might remain, but the layers on top of it, they're always shifting, evolving, adapting. One can only hope for the essence to remain there, untouched, pure.
Shortly after I had made myself comfortable at my bench, some dog owners and their pets started to arrive. The park is located in a nice area of the city, much nicer than where I live currently, yet it always amazes me how the built-in differences between people from various backgrounds fade once we take a closer look. A few men and women, all dressed up in comfy or sporty clothes, looking to spend some quality time with their pet friends after a workday.
I'm a cats person. Always have been. In fact, when I was a teen, there was a period of time when I had thirteen of them. Yep, I've always been destined to become the cat lady. I was a teen but deep inside I was the single, middle-aged woman wrapped in a robe, playing with her cats and chatting with them in funny voices. So... I think it's fair to say that I wasn't exactly in my element yesterday, surrounded by dogs.
To give credit where credit is due, they were all pretty much well behaved. No barking, little to no mess. All except one. A puppy, a big one should I add, of mixed race. Have you ever seen the emoji with the tongue stuck out and one eye bigger than the other? Well, this dog was the spitting image of it. For real! And this puppy was so happy to have made a new acquaintance that he kept coming after me, trying to say hi over and over in dog language, which translates as licking anything that resembles a hand.
From the conversations I had with his owner, a very nice lady with pretty eyes and a strong character, I came to know that the puppy's name was Teo. And even though he's a youngling, he's half-blind. I didn't ask why as I didn't want to be rude, but started paying a little more attention to Teo, guiding his nose gently whenever he'd approach me to play. I honestly believe animals have feelings so I didn't want to hurt his pushing him away, so I found a way to respond to his need for fun without being severely harmed in the process. He was indeed a big, full of energy puppy.
As time passed, more dogs and dog owners came to the park for their evening walk, and Teo found a match. He felt challenged by a French bulldog that wasn't too interested in him, so he started getting anxious, growling, and such. Watching them interact, I remembered a fun fact about puppies; they actually need to play with other animals to learn how to bite and when enough is enough. Without this kind of interaction, they can't know when the force they're applying is too much. And... Being a little philosophical right now, aren't we humans the same? Don't we need proper playtime to learn how to exert pressure and when it's too much? Food for thought.
By now, you might have forgotten I was actually waiting for my uncle to arrive so we could go hiking. Well, I was. By 5:30 p.m., he got there with his coworker, who would be joining us, and we finally got on our way to the mountain entrance. I hadn't met my uncle's coworker before, so I was a bit wary of the interaction being awkward. I do get along better with other animals than with humans.
It turned out that the chap has a sense of humour similar to my uncle's and mine, so it was all good. There was a moment right at the beginning of the route where he stopped and took a selfie to send to his wife, which we found quite amusing. And then, my uncle realized he still had the company's ID card hanging from his neck. Quite amusing, too.
The way up was spent sometimes in comfortable silence and with a few funny comments and stories here and there. Long story short, both the time spent dog-and-people-watching and the intense-enough workout helped me get out of my mind for a bit, while actually feeling more in tune with myself. Not with the problems, the issues that need solving, or the overwhelming emotions, but with myself. My essence. What I want to remain.
The hike ended up taking longer than expected due to a detour we made after reaching our destination. We did so to appreciate some views, now that we were there, which I didn't mind at all. I also got to enjoy the view of the rising full moon on the way down. I stepped back on the city's grounds feeling a bit refreshed, recharged, and very, very hungry, I should add. The evening was topped with the sandwiches I made as soon as I got home. Tuna, spinach, tomato, and mustard. My mouth waters just remembering it, so... I'm off to make something to eat. See you soon!
I'd like to thank you for reading this. I hope my words resonated with you in some way. If they did, or even if they didn't, I'd like to further connect with you, so I invite you to drop a comment and I'll answer it as soon as I can.
All images are my own