Dog Walking Before Work

I walk my neighbor's dog, Bruno, every morning at six while she works her nursing shift. He's a hundred-pound mastiff mix with the soul of a nervous kitten.

We have a route. Past the bakery, where the owner tosses him a biscuit. Past the school, where he stares at the swings. Down to the creek, where he steps in the water very carefully, as if it might bite.

He has introduced me to half the neighborhood. People who would never talk to me alone stop to talk to Bruno. A retired teacher named Gwen now walks with us twice a week. A kid on a skateboard named him "Chonk," and it has stuck.

My neighbor offered to pay me. I said no. Honestly, Bruno is the best part of my day, and he doesn't even know it.