A wet dog

I don't know this Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  We saw him at our favorite park in Atlanta on the first warm, sunny day we had in weeks.  He trotted up to the beach, about half the size of every other dog at the park, and immediately jumped into the water, leaving the other dogs trailing behind as he swam and caught the sticks that his human threw him.  When he returned to the shore, he clenched the stick between his teeth, a firm determined stare in his eyes, as he readied for the next volley into the water.  He was accomplishing something there, that day.

It's so easy to forget what we accomplish every day, week, month, and year.  The days run together and we lose track of where we have been and what we have achieved in this strange world.  There are great people who are frustrated with what they do and incredible countries being torn apart and reassembled.  There are times when we treat ourselves as our worst enemy.  A typical type-A personality, I fall into this trap, searching for the next goal to reach and the next check mark to tick off my to-do list.  I tend to belittle the things we've done, pushing them aside as not a big deal, and readying myself for the next challenge.

Today, spurred in part by this wonderfully gentle Zen at Play post, I stopped and thought about what I have achieved.  Last year, on this day, we were in Koh Tao, Thailand, where I learned to conquer my fear of scuba diving.  Last month, we put together a new design for this website.  This week, we launched the RTW in Retrospect Community Project, a series that I hope will help current and future travelers alike.  Tonight, I am going dancing.

And, though perhaps not as satisfying as a stick pulled from the water, I think I can be just as happy with my accomplishments as this little dog.  What about you?  What are you proud that you achieved?

* Each week, we will post one of our favorite photos for that week.  By the way, have you entered to win an American Portraits photography book?  Today is the last day to enter!