Pursuit
There’s a lake not far from where I live.
I go there when I can.
Watch the sun come up.
Something about water, as the world shakes off the night before.
Some mornings this dog chases me down the road.
Don’t think he’s angry, just bored.
Hangs out by the mailbox, head up as a car passes, deciding whether it’s worth the effort.
Might be a territorial thing.
Or he used to herd sheep, and now these metal beasts fill a spot in his life.
Wouldn’t know what to do if he caught one.
Usually when I pass him, I’m eating a donut, something I do semi-regularly, and sometimes for the same reasons.
Chasing some moment.
A brief flicker, maybe flare of joy.
Thinking that bit of fried dough will fill that void.
Other times, like today, that donut?
Is the point.
Not the fleeting satisfaction at its end.
It’s the ride, it’s the journey, it’s…the donut.
That dog?
Probably doesn’t want to catch a car.
Happy just to chase them, one at a time.
Because there’s always another.
A car.
A donut.
A moment.
Might as well enjoy this one.
Dan Has Notes is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
This is part of The 100, 100 posts in 100 days.