Connections: Dogs and Time

               Today in class we formed several discussions about time after reading the novel written by Alan Lightman, Einstein's Dreams. After reading the first 32 pages of the book the essence of time and how different time is to all of us kept stirring in my head. After peering down at my busy schedule for the week, I wouldn't be able to do all I do if there wasn't something called "time". When I finally walked through my door after a busy day at school, I went into my living room and laid down on the couch. Only two minutes later my little Yorkie came running into the room, jumped up onto the couch, laid on my stomach and looked me in the eyes. With the thought of time still prevalent in my head I questioned what time means to my dog. She's been home for over eight hours alone and yet still seems to be unaware of the time passing.
                Dogs have no conception of time. When we first got my dog we took her to puppy school to train her. One of the biggest tips we learned when training a dog was to punish the dog right away after they behave badly. If you fail to do so, with the dogs lack of conception of time they won't understand why you are scolding them. Although no one ever thinks to connect dogs and time, they pose as a great example for how the conception of time truly differs on the being. For Americans, we always are looking at the clock and making sure we are on time and in the places we need to be when told to do so. For dogs, they can sit on a chair for hours and move at their own free will and have no boarders surrounding them of when to be somewhere. Americans should learn from how dogs view time and begin to loosen their conceptions of time. Without the burden of always being late, Americans can enjoy life for all it has to offer, much like dogs and the conception of a timeless world.