We spend so much time chasing books and gurus and strategies to help us live more authentically.
But sometimes the clearest life lessons come in the form of a seven-month-old Yorkie named Benjamin.
Benjamin isn't trying to be wise,
He isn't reading self-help and he's just being a with you the things I have learned by simply watching him live.
My name is Martha Curtis,
I'm a psychotherapist and coach and I support creatives and individuals recover from abusive and narcissistic relationships.
So let's start with lesson one.
Approach without judgment.
Benjamin sees another dog and he approaches.
Not with fear,
Not with assumption,
Just pure curiosity.
He doesn't scan them for status,
Style or backstory.
He doesn't ask if they vote like him,
Eat like him or align with his views.
He just wants to say hello.
What if we approached people like that?
With presence,
Not prejudice.
With openness,
Not assumption.
And yes,
Discernment matters,
But what would it be like to lead with curiosity and learn through experience?
Lesson two.
Know when to step back.
When Benjamin's had enough of cuddles,
He simply moves.
He doesn't bark,
He doesn't bite.
He just gets up and reclaims his space.
It's not dramatic,
It's not offensive.
He just needs his little room.
Imagine if we did that.
If we honored our bodies without guilt.
If we said no without apology.
Or if we stopped seeing boundaries as rejection and started seeing them as wisdom.
Benjamin doesn't perform discomfort,
He just moves.
Lesson three.
Give yourself time to adjust.
Every time we enter a new place,
Benjamin pauses.
He looks around,
He listens,
He sniffs the air.
He doesn't rush in.
And he doesn't pretend to be comfortable right away.
He familiarizes himself with his surroundings before engaging.
How often do we allow ourselves that grace?
To not instantly fit in,
To not know the vibe immediately,
To scan,
Absorb and ease in at our own pace.
Benjamin reminds me that adaptation is not weakness,
It's actually wisdom in motion.
Lesson four.
Explore what interests you,
Not what you're told to like.
Yeah,
Benjamin has clear preferences.
He will sniff something and walk past something else.
He likes some dogs more than others.
And he is not people pleasing,
He is just choosing.
And of course he is allowed.
And you are allowed too.
To be and to like what you like.
To pass on what you don't.
To not explain why that one thing lit you up and the other didn't.
Benjamin,
He doesn't overanalyze his joy,
He just follows it.
Lesson five.
Learn by sensing,
Not just doing.
We often want to do our way through uncertainty and Benjamin senses his way through it.
He pauses,
He listens,
He notices what's around him before reacting to it.
Unless it's a cat,
But we don't talk about that.
Sometimes he does this in the middle of a walk and he will stop and just look,
Observe,
Wait.
And so I stop too.
I let him have that moment.
I watch him read the air.
What if we made room in our own lives for this kind of noticing?
To let stillness be part of our movement.
To listen.
Not just to others,
But actually to ourselves.
And here's a bonus lesson.
Trust what the world,
That the world's not all bad,
But don't ignore that some dogs might bite.
Benjamin doesn't assume the worst,
But he's also learning discernment.
Yes,
He approaches with curiosity,
But he's learning,
Sometimes a bit slowly,
That not every dog is safe.
And he's also learning to come back when called,
To stay close when the energy shifts,
To protect his little doggo heart,
Even while staying open.
And I don't believe it's naivety,
It's actually bravery with boundaries.
And that's a powerful combination we humans are always learning to master.
Benjamin,
Of course he doesn't know he's teaching me,
But every day I watch him be present and have preferences,
Protect his space and engage with the world from a place of curiosity instead of fear.
He's not perfect,
He makes mistakes,
He gets excited,
But he's real and isn't that what we're all trying to be?
So if Benjamin's little lessons reminded you of something you needed to hear,
Please share this episode with a fellow human who could use a reminder that life doesn't always have to be so complicated.
Sometimes the wisest teachers,
They walk on four paws.
Until next time.
