December 24. Day 359. Out of the shadows

There are many reasons people choose the beach for a holiday - sun, surf and sand tend to be the top of the list. They are all on my list too but the gold medal goes to dogs. It is true that dogs exist in places other than on the beach. When dogs hit the beach, however, the joy of both amplifies.
There is nothing happier than the faces of dogs charging up the beach and into the water. It's a beautiful thing. I know it. All the dog lovers in my family know it and yet until today my sister Lisa kept Shadow on a lead.
Let's be honest, she had pretty good reason. The first time we went away together on a doggie break, Shadow nearly gave us a heart attack. He simply disappeared. He turned up back at the holiday house we had rented. It was across a busy highway and about a kilometre away and in addition we'd only arrived there about 2.5 seconds before setting off to the beach. And yet he went "home" there without us, taking years off our lives in the process. He did it one other time and after that no more off leash for Shadow.
But today Lisa decided to give it another go, hoping Shadow was older and wiser. It worked. He ran. He chased.
And then he came back.
It was a glorious thing.
Long may it continue.