The best compliment I received

No philosophy intended here. Just want to share a personal story…

Barnie, my dog was 3 months old. Around 10 pounds (4.5KG) and baby teeth. I lived in a huge condo with over 600 apartments. Most neighbors loved him and would get very excited when they would see him and would want to play with him. I would take him to the open green area near the swimming pool and would let him run around while some kids and adults would come play with him. I guess almost everyone loves puppies. Or do they…

One morning, an old lady saw Barnie running towards her and got really scared and she chided me for not putting him on leash. I tried to reason that he would not harm her and was just a puppy. She didn’t want to hear any of that and was really upset. I apologized and took him away. Next morning onwards I was conscious that she could be around and I would keep an eye on Barnie and ensured he stays at least 50 feet away from her, if not more. I realized she was a regular there and would take rounds of the pools as her morning walk. Whenever she would get close to the area I would pick Barnie up and would wish her Morning. She would just nod her head and not respond.

This went on a for a couple of weeks and one day she came to talk to me and asked me if I live with my mum and if she could meet her. I told her that my mum lives in India but sometimes comes to Singapore. She told me that when my mom comes next, she would like to meet her and tell her that she has raised her boy well!

Well, I moved to New York before my Mom would visit but what she said stayed with me…