It’s a nationally celebrated day of love, and I hopped in the car with Starr. I’m still getting into a rhythm with writing on the internet, to be honest. Right now, the method I am sticking with is to show up with grace.

Today, I want to share a little story about me and Starr. As many mornings in the past year, I have been waking up sleepy. Starr sleeps so close to me, and I sleep my best when it’s this way. Starr understands when it’s time for a walk. When we got in the car (because our destination was a few freeway-exits away), Starr eagerly jumped into the back seat. He stood up, ready for the ride!

Just as I was about to drive, I pulled out my phone to record a video. He was so cute in his Valentine’s Day bandana (I was also in a bit of a panic/anxious spiral). But, after a couple minutes of recording and playing the video back, I noticed that he slumped down, kind of irritated about this behavior.

I stopped trying to record and took it as the signal that we better get going! Windows halfway open, we drove away! Starr was slightly happier.

In anticipation of the walk planned ahead, I did my routine thing- buy a latte. It was so relaxing to get some sunshine, and the feeling of peace that comes with being outdoors was settling in. Now that I had my drink in hand, I brought the obedient Starr out for his walk.

Starr is just a bundle of energy. And smells excite him, even more! This is no new news. So, as we were making our way around the block, he pulled more and more, sending all the sniffs into the jolliest parts of his soul. We turned a corner. There must have been a symphony of smells in the bush we walked past! The next thing I know, I’m pulling in one direction to lead, with Starr pulling in the other direction to take in the most satisfying sniff.

Splat! Ice, milk, and espresso everywhere.

My reaction time rebounded from embarrassment to pragmatic decision-making. I walked away with Starr, caught one glance from a family sitting near us, and strut my frazzled self back to the market.

I tied Starr to a nearby pole, feeling a little more confident about our training. For dog-handlers, you know that “stay” training and trust is so exciting when all the work pays off. I shook off the shame and just bought the latte. Big deal. Maybe Starr knows how to behave now, maybe it was just the calm environment. Either way, he did a wonderful job staying calm and waiting for me until I returned!

We walked out of the market’s lot, into an open, grassy area. I thought I’d steal a moment of opportunity to take a photo, seeing that he sat in front of an interesting background. Well, one moment led to the next in this spontaneous brush of impulse. I felt more confident (yet again), taking off his leash, hoping he’d stay in place. Bless Starr’s soul! He ran the moment he knew there was nothing to tether him down!!

He ran up, sideways, caught my eye, ran again, found a crawl space, trotted into the parking lot over… until…aha! A CLEAN BONE. Even I was happy he found his own treasure with this escapade!! Something greater was watching over us, because this discovery of a bone helped me lure him back to safety. When I got a chance to hold the bone in my own hand, I used it to lure him close to me. Go, Starr!! He took this cue (and smell) and let me, clip him back to his leash once again.

I still love that he had his moment of unleashed joy. I was nervous. But, through it all… thanks to the bone, we turned a spill of a day, into an experience that tested our trust for one another. Happy love day, 2026. May love spill over our days in unexpected ways. May we be open to finding them and have grace for ourselves when it is harder to notice it.

-Dana