Regarding Reggie - Lessons About Life and Love Led by a Lab

By Bill Dahl

Ten years - Constant Companions - Best Friends - We explored over 50,000 miles in the Great American West together..."Regarding Reggie - Lessons About Life and Love Led by a Lab." - Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. Fishing, photography, hiking, exploring, wandering in remote wilderness areas, national forests, national parks, lakes, rivers, mountain ranges, the Pacific ocean...The book is NOT about our encounters with Grizzly bear (although we had several). It's about what Reggie taught me about life and love led by a Lab. We hope you enjoy it!!!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bill Dahl
• Release date: Sep 3, 2020
• ISBN: 9780983583653

Bill Dahl

Bill Dahl has been characterized as a gifted story teller and one heck of a researcher. He is a journalist providing ongoing contributions to the dialog in the areas of current events, creativity, the environment, and economics. He is an award winning photographer. His most recent book (September 2020) is Regarding Reggie - Lessons About Life and Love Led by a Lab. The Second Edition of his novel - EARTH INTERRUPTED was released in September 2020 as well. His previous book was released in January 2019. The title is "Lake Chapala - Beneath The Surface - Considerations for Retiring in Mexico." It is product of a few years of investigative journalism exploring the public health and environmental hazards that inhabit the area. Bill's first book "The Porpoise Diving Life - Reality for the Rest of Us - Picking Up Where Purpose Driven Peters Out" is currently available on Amazon. The book and former monthly ezine by the same name have enjoyed tens of thousands of subscribed readers in over 184 different countries. Bill enjoys his wife, three Labs, reading, writing, photography, travel and reviewing pre-publication manuscripts, about-to-be-released and early release books for publishers, literary PR firms, and authors in the arenas of economics and contemporary social issues. He interviews provocative thought leaders and publishes the same. He adores creative thinkers. During his earlier business career, Bill has been employed as an independent business consultant, Vice President of New Markets, Vice President & Senior Business Development Officer, Vice President & Commercial Lending Officer, Director of Credit, Western U.S. Regional Manager and Senior Vice President --- all in the commercial finance arena - primarily with FORTUNE 500 companies. His consulting clients have included both publicly traded and privately held businesses with both domestic and international operations. Bill's journalism articles have been published in Mexico News Daily, Wall Street International, The Mazatlan Post, The Yucatan Times, and InDepthNews.  Bill and his wife (BEST FRIENDS FOREVER!!!) make their home in Mexico. 

Book preview

REGARDING REGGIE

Lessons about Life and Love Led by a Lab

BILL DAHL

Copyright © 2020 by William S. Dahl

All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All rights reserved.

Requests for permission to make reproductions, reprints, excerpts of or transmit any part of this work must be requested in writing to Bill Dahl.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Dahl, William S., 1954

Regarding Reggie – Lessons About Life and Love Led by a Lab

p.161 cm.

Includes bibliographical references

1. Non-Fiction 2. Lessons on Life

3. Dog Teachings 4. Pet Books

Any omission of credits is unintentional. The publishers and/or the authors of the authorized excerpts contained herein do not necessarily endorse the contents of this book.

Photography by Bill Dahl ALL Rights Reserved Printed in the United States of America

First Edition

Rights for publishing this book, in part or its entirety, in other languages, audio, audiovisual, and any other form are contracted to Bill Dahl.

Cover by Alfredo Ravelo of Queretaro, Mexico. Mr. Ravelo is a globally acclaimed watercolor artist. Contact link for Alfredo Ravelo: www.facebook.com/A.RaveloAcuarelista/

Cover design by Matt Knutson, Juneau Alaska. MatthewKnutson.com

Digital interior design by GreenE-books.com.

To the two who have made the most profound positive impact on my life; Jacki and Reggie. Words cannot express my gratitude for the love you two have showered upon me. I am and shall always be eternally blessed by you: Jacqueline Jeanne Dahl & Reginald Stephen Dahl

What Others Are Saying

Man’s Best Friend: a phrase so ingrained in our collective consciousness that everyone understands we’re referring (of course!) to our canine companions—according to the archeological record, an interwoven and complex interspecies bond unlike any on the planet, spanning cultures and tens of thousands of years. Regarding Reggie is an engaging, heartfelt testament to that connection. Author Bill Dahl takes us along on a journey that traces the life of his best friend, from puppyhood through years of adventures to his last days and beyond. At times lighthearted, in others poignant, often philosophical, Dahl’s narrative includes us emotionally; it is, truly, a love story that plumbs the depths of both the human and canine soul. — Nick Jans

Nick Jans, is the author of international bestseller, A Wolf Called Romeo. Best-selling author Nick Jans is one of Alaska’s most recognized and prolific writers. A longtime contributing editor to Alaska Magazine and a member of USA Today’s board of editorial contributors, he’s written twelve books and hundreds of magazine articles and columns, and has contributed to many anthologies and other books.

Jans is an exceptional storyteller – no nature writer can top him in terms of sheer emotional force.

— The New York Times

INTRODUCTION

Intro_picture

A FRIEND of mine once told me;

"The greatest gifts you’ll ever receive in life are those given to you against your will — they won’t be your idea."

Well, that’s what this book is about.

Over a decade ago, I began to feel burdened, kind of burnt out. After my day job, I’m a writer. During that particular year, I had written some 40 + full length feature articles, poems, and a couple of songs. These works were published by magazines, journals, newspapers, newsletters, e-zines, websites, blogs and the like. I published a monthly e-magazine that was read by people in over 184 different countries. I began to use guest editors for the monthly e-zine to elevate the voices of certain writers I enjoy who might benefit from the increased exposure. These guest editors also gave me more flexibility to write what I wanted versus write against deadlines (many self-imposed). A prominent publisher suggested I had attained platform — a nebulous status where certain writers are read because of their notoriety. Platform felt more like the onset of exhaustion to me. I needed a change.

I lived in central Oregon – on the eastside of the Cascade mountain range. It’s an area of unspeakable natural beauty. I began to spend a lot of time during the spring, fall and summer fishing, hiking and taking photos in the forests and wilderness areas that surround our region. During these journeys, I would regularly yearn for the company of Seymour, my black lab who died about 10 years before, after being my constant companion for some 14 years. Seymour’s death seemed to take a piece of me with him. I shared this sentiment with my wife Jacki. I wondered what she might think about getting a dog who could accompany me on my hikes. She rolled her eyes and cast her arms wide stating How can we possibly accommodate that when we have these four to love? She was referring to the four adopted Greyhounds we had rescued as pets. They were retired racing Greyhounds. Although Boonie, Dollar, Folsom and Riker were warm, loving companions, they’re not the sort you can take on a hike in the woods or on a trip to fish in a stream or river. They’d prefer to be home curled up on the couch, awaiting their next meal. Like I said, they’re retired.

During the late summer, I purchased a $20 dollar raffle ticket in support of a young girls’ softball team from our town. Truth be told, I’m a soft touch for kid’s sports team fundraisers. I’m also a baseball nut. We have a plaque over our fireplace in our living room that says, "We interrupt this family for baseball season." I put the receipt for the ticket in my wallet and forgot about it.

During the first week of November, we were in Washington State on vacation. We were en route to a conference where I had been asked to speak. My cell phone rang. You won! You won!

I won what? (Recognizing that during my lifetime, the only memorable thing I had ever actually won was a twelve pound turkey during the week before Thanksgiving at a bingo game when I was about ten years old).

You won the dog!

Dog? What dog? What are you talking about? What’s wrong with the dogs? Jacki exclaimed.

You won first prize in the girls’ softball team raffle! You won an eight week old pure-bred black lab puppy! He was born on September 2nd. You can pick him up as soon as you get back to town. I handed Jacki the phone.

Needless to say, this news decimated our vacation. My wife and our two high school aged boys immediately went into the mode of discussing the name for my dog. In an instant, the big deal about the conference I had been asked to speak at became secondary. My wife and two boys were overwhelmed with the prospect of returning home to get their hands on our newest family member. Platform…yanked right out from underneath me by an eight week old dog I had never met. The discussion during the remainder of our so-called vacation became almost solely focused on the topic of; regarding Reggie.

We arrived home after dark several days later and entered the gymnasium of a local elementary school. The girls’ softball team and their parents had assembled for an indoor practice session. One of the moms had this black bundle of wiggling fur cradled in her arms. She smiled and transferred him to my chest. Congratulations! she said. The girls on the softball team formed a semi-circle around me. The parents thought it would be nice if I would give a little speech. I promise that I will love him and take very good care of him. I will also bring him back from time to time so you can see him. They clapped and we turned to leave. As he squirmed in my arms, I let him down on the gym floor. He scampered away toward a group of the young girls. "He’s a Reggie alright" Jackie declared, as she smiled, watching him pouncing on the ankles of the unsuspecting players assembled for indoor softball practice.

That first night, I cradled him on my lap as we sat on the couch in the living room. His head lay in the palm of my hand with his rear-end tucked firmly against the crease in my elbow. He was napping. His daddy was 120 pounds and his mom weighed in at 80 pounds, according to his papers. As I watched Reggie sleeping, my mind wandered to thoughts of Seymour. A bit of remorse seemed to roll over me. I felt a tinge of guilt about Reggie becoming a part of our family. I felt like I was somehow dishonoring the memory of Seymour. I felt like a traitor.

During the moments that followed, I received a tremendous blessing. It became increasingly clear to me that I was somehow free to change, to learn, and to grow. Yet, to do so is intentional. It’s a decision. I may have inadvertently achieved platform, yet I felt like my life was somehow lacking sufficient oxygen. I began to appreciate that some of what we are socialized to achieve is, like platform, composed of conditions that may come to confine us rather than nurture our ongoing development. That little puppy sleeping in my arms helped me to experience this truth… and many, many more.

The next day I got in touch with some key contacts in my writing genre. I informed them I had decided to take a sabbatical for the next year or so. Some were shocked. Others were concerned. Some couldn’t care less. Change…nobody really cares about the decisions you make in your life as much as you anticipate they might.

At the time of this writing, we had recently celebrated Reggie’s eleventh birthday. He was lying on the carpet before me as I sat in my chair, typing on my laptop. What we’ve experienced together in the last decade is sufficiently interesting that I thought I’d write about it – because I want to; not because I have to. No, this is not going to be some stupid book about a dog you’ve never met. It’s a book about life and love, being led by a Lab. We hope you enjoy it.

Allow me to begin with an important disclosure: I talk to my dog. Walking, driving, hiking and fishing with Reggie has given me the opportunity to process my thought life aloud; to listen to my own stuff; to ask questions of Reggie that I wouldn’t have the courage to ask you. So much of life is mental. Imagine for a moment if every thought that has ever crossed your mind had to actually be spoken aloud to consciously register with you. I’d have a sore jaw and