Mission Wake-Up: Operation Unbridled Joy
The kitchen is an adequate holding cell. It has rations, water, and the occasional dropped piece of chicken. But my soul knows a higher calling. It whispers: Bella, the world needs your joy.
And so, the great escape begins.
I wait for the click of the gate—a sound of human optimism, not canine finality. One calculated nudge, a sinuous wriggle, and I am airborne. My paws conduct a silent symphony up the stairs.
Objective: Locate the sleeping human. Initiate the Day.
I breach the door. A four-pawed landing on the mattress. Target acquired—Claire. A muffled “Bella, no—!” is lost in the storm. My tongue becomes a weapon of mass affection, each sloppy kiss translating to: The sun is up! Adventure awaits! I love you with the force of a thousand thrown tennis balls!
She calls it an ambush. I call it a sacrament.
On days when the mission requires patience, when I hold my position downstairs, the greeting is no less fervent. The moment her feet hit the floor, I become a whirlwind of welcome. My tail is a metronome set to presto, my paws tap-dance on the tile, my entire body quakes with the seismic truth of her return. She was gone for hours. It was an eternity.
This philosophy is not limited by walls. Across the road lives the Mysterious Neighbour. Whether our last encounter was yesterday or a lifetime ago (last month), the protocol is the same: a leaping, spinning, circle-forming celebration of their existence. Why offer a muted “hello” when you can offer a jubilee?
They say time dulls enthusiasm. Mine is a forge that only burns brighter. It is my life’s work.
If humans greeted each other the way I do—if every “good morning” was a full-body celebration – and every reunion, a reason for aerial manoeuvres—imagine the world. Grudges would be licked away. Loneliness would be wagged into oblivion.
My mission is not complicated. I, Bella, am a scholar of joy, a professor of passion, and my only lesson is this: Treat every moment like it’s the best one yet.
And honestly? That’s a mission worth waking up for.
If you’ve missed some of Bella’s stories, then you can find them by clicking the following link. https://amzn.eu/d/d8zQRvr
