Scolded

It may surprise you to find out how many times a day I get corrected, glared at, tsk-tsked at, or just plain hollered at: "Stop rolling Pico across the floor!" "Don't sit on Ollie!" "That's MY breakfast!"

Sometimes I can't do anything right.

But today I was honored to be scolded - by a peregrine falcon! This demon of the sky was sitting in the tree top by the bridge, hoping to pounce on a nice plump pigeon. And when I walked under his perch he scolded me. At first my Person couldn't figure out where the sound was coming from. It was bouncing off the concrete bridge and seemed to come from all directions. And she couldn't figure out what it was - it sounded sort of like an eagle but not quite. I don't get stuck in all this minutia of who, what, where, why...I just bark. So I did, and big surprise, I got shushed for that. But when we retraced our steps the bird scolded again and this time we saw it.

And why am I so pleased to be scolded? This bird considered me a rival, a fellow hunter and pouncer, and a wild thing. And I am, too. So I trotted away, unchastened and proud, wondering if pigeon tastes as good as dog treats.