A tiny puppy bounced up and down on the big golden dog’s head.  “What shall we do today?” he cried.  “Shall we roll in the grass?”

The large dog yawned.

“Shall we splash in puddles or slide in the mud?  Maybe chase a squirrel or eat a bird?”

The large dog frowned.  “Only cats eat birds.  We simply kill them.  Well, some do.  I prefer to eat them broiled.  Or fried.”  He drooled on his paw, imagining his Owner’s fried chicken.  He was lucky his Owner was a plump Southern older lady with elastic waistbands and aprons permanently doused in flour.  His friend Mitchell, a already anemic greyhound, had to live with a fitness fanatic who insisted on daily runs and tofu dog bones.  The large dog shuddered at the thought.

Huffing so hard his ears flew up, the puppy bounced down the golden retriever’s back.  “Let’s do something exciting!  Let’s dig a hole under the fence and see what’s in the other yard.”

“Dirt and grass,” the older dog replied, stretching lazily.  “Same as in this yard.”

“We can bark at people,” the puppy suggested, leaping onto the older dog’s rear with a breathless jump.

The older dog shrugged.  “We can bark at dogs or cats too.  We can bark at anyone we please.”

Whimpering, the puppy flopped down on the golden, silky back and sighed.  “Well, this isn’t fun at all.  I thought being a dog was supposed to be exciting.”

“Relaxing,” the older dog corrected. “We must save our energy for when the Owner returns home.”  He frowned.  “You really should stop peeing on the carpet every time she walks in.”

“She surprises me!” the puppy squealed.  “It’s like I’m sad because she’s gone and then all of the sudden she’s back!  It’s like magic.”

The older dog merely snorted.

“But didn’t you do anything fun when you were a puppy?” the puppy wheedled, chewing on a bug burrowing into the golden dog’s fur.  He swallowed and raised his ears.

“Yes, of course I did.”  The older dog sighed and laid his chin on the floor.  The sun was due out any minute, and it’d be the perfect spot for a nap.

“What did you do?” the puppy prompted.

“Oh, dug through trash cans, ate shoes, chased sticks, chewed on bones…the usual.”

“That sounds amazing!” the puppy crowed, leaping up.  “Why don’t we do those things now?”

The older dog shook his head.  “I told you.  We must save our energy for our Owner.”

“I have plenty of energy!” the puppy cried.

“I don’t.”  The older dog frowned.

“I can share,” the puppy offered hopefully, bouncing once again.  “I can grab onto your tail with my teeth and wag it for you.  See?”  Without waiting, he grabbed the older dog’s tail and dashed from side to side, yanking it from left to right.

“Ouch!”  The golden retriever howled, plastering his tail to his rear.  “Do you mind?”

“I’m bored,” the puppy whined, flopping down in a puddle of fur.  One ear flopped over his black eyes, which stared at the dog.  “Can’t we do something fun?  I thought dogs did exciting things.”

The large dog sighed and lumbered to his feet.  “If I play with you, will you let me have a nap later?”

“Yes!” The puppy leaped into the air.  “Yes, yes, yes!”

“Ok, fine,” the older dog huffed, wheezing as he raced (well, as fast as he could race) across the yard.  “Last one to the fence is a rotten egg!”

Although the older dog was determined to wear out the younger dog for a leisurely sun nap, he found himself having fun.  They chased balls, treed squirrels, barked at curious mailmen and joggers, dug up an entire row of bushes, chewed on some old buried bones and ripped apart a old beach ball.  As they rolled in the mud where the bushes used to be, the puppy squealed.  “See, now this is more like it!”

The older dog chuckled.  “One would think this was your first day of being a dog.  You act as if everything is new.”

“Well, it is.”  The puppy smiled, his tongue wagging.

The older dog blinked at him.  “You mean…”

The puppy nodded, suddenly looking bashful.  “It’s amazing what the Tooth Fairy can do when she runs out of quarters.”

The older dog blinked, then grinned.  “Well, we don’t have much time left then.”

“For what?”   The puppy bounced to his feet, giddy.

“For everything.”  The older dog smiled and lumbered inside.  Bouncing merrily behind him, the puppy’s tail beat harder than his thrilled heart.

Stay tuned, Invisible Friends!  We have a week of fun coming up!