Love Is Hitting Pause… Even When the Dog Won’t

Love isn’t always poetic. Sometimes, it’s just knowing when to hit pause.

Not on life—on the show you’re watching.

You’re deep into a scene, fully invested. And then—BARK. BARK. BARK. BARK. BARK. BARK. The dog loses its mind. Over what? Who knows. A car door slamming two blocks away. A squirrel with an attitude. A breeze that had the audacity to exist. Or at my house, the unending war between the dog and the cat.

And just like that, your person gets up. To calm the dog, to check the door, to referee yet another round of the pet kingdom’s cold war. And without thinking, you hit pause.

Not for the dog—the dog doesn’t care. Not for the cat. Her “head is a box full of nothing. And that's the way she likes it. And that’s the way she likes it.”

No.

You do it for them. You do it for your person. Because you know they don’t want to miss anything. Because watching together is the point.

That’s love. Not the big, dramatic movie kind. The everyday, lived-in kind. The kind that shows up in the little moments—like waiting, listening, and hitting pause even when the dog won’t.

And on this Valentine’s Day, I hope you have someone to hit pause for. Because I gotta tell ya, it makes life a little easier. Even when other things are not.

What do you think? What’s the smallest thing someone’s done that made you feel loved?

Let me know in the comments and check out more at jamesbrowntv.substack.com.

On that note, I’m James Brown, and as always, be well.