The Barking Dog

We were gliding effortlessly through the water of the resevoir. I was sitting in the front of the canoe, the place for an up-close view of nature. I began to notice the birds floating  beside us, others diving into the depths of the water, and other birds taking flight like a rockets from the water's surface. The trees on the shore looked so small, like miniature trees in a model train landscape. It was peaceful on the water. My senses were being filled with the uplifting, life giving chi of nature.  I began to hear the sound of a barking dog somewhere on the shore. It was a short bark followed by a short silence and then another short bark. It did not bother me at first. It continued for several minutes so I began looking on the shore for a barking dog. There were people on the shore fishing and I thought “they must have a dog with them” I looked and looked but could not see a dog. Finally, I asked my husband if he could see the barking dog on shore. From behind me he said  there was no barking dog but what I was hearing was two geese honking. Did you know honking geese sound  a lot like a barking dog?  To my surprise I saw two beautiful brown geese on the beach and no dogs in sight.  I laughed because I was so busy looking for a barking dog that I almost missed the geese. I wondered “How many times in life have I been looking for a barking dog and missed the geese?” How have my expectations blocked what was really there? Have you ever been so busy looking for something that you miss what is really there? I would love to hear about your experiences