Meet Johnny
Hiking Journal #1
We met Johnny on our hike last weekend.
Johnny is a dog, black as night and could be mistaken for a wolf. We never did get the nice man’s name; isn’t that how it always goes? We introduce our kids and dogs, but never ourselves.
I’m not sure the man or Johnny expected to have a four-year-old and her dad join them on their wintry hike but they both were perfectly hospitable.
Especially Johnny.
He and Ada chased one another up and down the trail, through mud and snow and over rocks and tree roots. Ada only stopped to pick up a stick or make a snowball to throw for Johnny, considerations he very much appreciated.
They played follow-the-leader for a good 10-15 minutes before coming to a fork in the path that saw us go in opposite directions.
“Do you think we’ll see Johnny again?” Ada asked me as she and Johnny looked at one another from a distance. I like to imagine he was thinking the same thing about her.
“Maybe,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “But maybe that’s the only time we’ll meet them and that’s okay, too.”
“I’d like to see him again.”
“Me too, love. He was such a nice doggy.” I continued. “But that’s kind of a fun part about hiking, you meet people and dogs for a minute and then they’re gone. You just never know who you’ll meet or if you’ll see them again... It keeps life interesting, you know?”
She seemed to be okay with that answer but ended the conversation about Johnny with “Maybe we’ll see him again,” just to leave an opening in her mind for another chance encounter.
Meeting friendly dogs (and their owners) is one of the many reasons we love hiking. Dogs, similar to children, are like open doors to conversations with strangers. They’re an ‘in’ to start talking to people you otherwise wouldn’t have a reason to talk to, even if it’s just a quick “Hello”, a scratch behind the ears, and affirmations of “Good boy” or “Good girl”.
They also force us to be social when, in the depths of the woods, people are more often wearing head or earphones — out in the world but cut off from the people and nature around them. That’s not judgement or condemnation, it’s just reality.
So, thank you to the anonymous man and Johnny for being open to this chance encounter and having the courtesy to let a little girl and her dad join them on their midday hike, if only for a moment.
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