My Miserable Morning…

Jon and I have been dog-watching again for a family who is on leave in Germany. Mickey, our Rhodesian Ridgeback, will be our dog until the end of October. One of my favorite times of day is while out walking Mickey (or maybe I should say while she is walking us – we are trying to train that out of her but she is a young, extraordinarily energetic, strong dog). Most evenings Jon and I try to walk her together, usually out toward Mmopane Hill where we will climb up and watch the sunset before walking home again. It is almost magical to be walking through the bush with the reds and purples of the sunset shimmering on the sand.

Mickey and I walking to Mmopane Hill

View of the sunset from Mmopane Hill

In the mornings over the past week and a half I have been taking Mickey out for a run in the morning as well. Mickey is such a blessing as she is not an aggressive dog but she is big enough that no one will mess with me as long as she is along. This past week I have been running through town where I meet up with Liah, my new running buddy. Once out of town I let Mickey off her leash to roam while Liah and I run together. As Liah wasn’t able to make it this morning I decided to extend my run and do some exploring, I hoped that the dirt road I usually take would bend and loop around Mmopane Hill so I could run around the hill rather than having to back track. For all I know the road might actually do that but I didn’t find the way this morning. After run/walking for almost an hour without getting any closer to the other side of the hill, I started to feel a little concern that my morning run was going to turn into a half day event. Squatting to tie my shoe, I looked up just in time to see Mickey careening toward me with her tail wagging as she enthusiastically knocked me over. I could feel my nose running a little and as I went to wipe it I noticed blood dripping into the sand – yes, Mickey had given me a bloody nose. With both nostrils dripping and Mickey wanting to play, I was knocked over two more times before I realized she couldn’t understand my ‘Micky, sit’ commands because of my pinched off nose. It took several minutes but I finally got the bleeding under control and started trying to find my way toward home.

Mickey and I together at a happier time

Randomly selecting cow paths that seemed to lead in the right direction, I didn’t seem to be making much progress. Fortunately I was in the middle of no where and only passed a couple people, but those who saw me stared with mouths hanging open (I’m hoping it was because of my stunning beauty but I think it was more likely because of my bloody face and hands). After an hour and a half on the trail I called Jon just so that he wouldn’t worry. I gave him my sob story about being lost, cold, and bloody and he (being the wonderful husband he is) lamented my situation with such sympathy that I actually started to feel a little better. Another twenty minutes after that I found my way into town. A few houses into town held a young girl sweeping her yard; I greeted her and asked if I could get some water to wash myself with (all in Setswana, yes!). Wide eyed she ran in to get a cup and filled it with water from the faucet in the yard. Knowing where I was and getting cleaned up made me feel like a new person. Two hours and fifteen minutes after leaving home for my morning run I finally returned home.