granola and manolos

Around this time back in 2009, I wrote a post about how I had abandoned my quest for a more stylish self...as someone who pined for designer labels and a keen fashion sense....and instead was more content in comfortable, functional attire and on the trails in the outdoors with my Sophie. I had gone "granola" my little sister often said to me during that year. This same sister recently reminded me of this post as I babbled excitedly about a new handbag I had been coveting for a few months and, having saved enough, was off to purchase the week after Christmas. Her words have stuck with me these past couple of weeks....was I being a hypocrite? Or what had changed? Which one of these people was the real me? And I came to the conclusion today, that nothing had changed nor was I being a hypocrite....I was in fact both of these people. I didn't have to choose...and that is something Sophie has taught me.

I have seen Sophie in pure Border Collie working mode....herding sheep, tail low, eyes focussed...and then two days later have seen her rolling around in the snow, leaping in crazy figure eights out of pure silly joy. I have seen her quiet and cuddly on a couch with my Dad while he read the paper for an hour and I have seen her, in those early days, crazed and manic on an agility course, spittle flying with every piercing bark. The point is she is all of those dogs rolled into one loveable Sophie. And in every instance she is just being herself. And that is the lesson....be yourself in every moment. Whether it's in a stylish boutique in Yorkville or on the trails in northern Ontario, you can be anything you want any day of the week.

So, after Christmas, Sophie and I headed north to the cottage for a few days and we loved every minute of it. With a huge grin on my face, I walked the frozen lake with her and simply enjoyed being outside, in the peaceful, cold, quiet of winter, with my girl. And then we headed home where, with a huge grin on my face, I walked into the boutique and bought my handbag. I can eat granola while wearing my favourite pair of Manolos...a lesson I learned from one hard working, playful, subdued, manic border collie.