Hey! Hey! I'm Berney! It's me, Berney! I'm right here! Hold on, should I spin around? How about this angle? What about now? Wait, wait, wait! Look what I can do! (WHOA!) OK. Settling.
(Exhale.)
Nope. Can't do it. I'm just SO EXCITED!
Everything in life makes me excited. Our humans, my brother, daylight, you name it! It's so great to be alive and living on this island, especially with the best big brother there ever was.
Sunny is cool, calm and collected. I, on the other paw, am chaos dressed in fur. He's proper and patient, and thankfully, he humors me through all my spinning, barking and general tomfoolery.
I'm three years younger, although I'm afraid I've aged him twice that. But it's nice to have balance in the house, yes?
My brother is the one who would read directions. I’m the reason they wrote them! I'm the scrappy one with the caramel coat, big fluffy paws and eyes full of every moment, all at once. Sunny has the composure of a distinguished gentleman enjoying his morning newspaper. I have the attention span of a squirrel at a fireworks show. SQUIRREL?! Wait. Where was I?
Oh, yes. My brother.
We approach everything differently. Even when Ms. Jane gives us her delicious homemade cookies, I snatch 'em like it's my last meal, while Mr. Perfect over here won't even eat them!
It's insane! A perfectly baked cookie, all alone. Don’t worry, little buddy, I got you.
He also loves his alone time, which I don't understand. I need to be everywhere, with everyone, all the time. If he wanders off for a little peace and quiet, I'm up! I'm there! I'm coming!
Wait. Where are we going again?
Sunny is serious about his 7:30 a.m. beach time, and I'm down with that! I wish he'd chase me with the ball once in a while, but instead, he turns his nose up as I bum-rush him to claim the prize.
He loves the beach but refuses to get his paws wet. If the ball rolls into the water, he simply waits for Mom or Dad to retrieve it. A dog who has trained his humans to retrieve. Genius!
And get this. If Mom and Dad separate during our struts in the sand, Sunny says, "No go." I don't even notice until he notices. Then, naturally, I agree with him. Family meeting! Everybody back together! Let's GO!
We're opposites in every way. I burn through my day like a bottle rocket with paws. When the sun goes down, so do I. Meanwhile, Sunny is just getting started, tossing his toys around and enjoying his evening.
I'm only serious about one thing in life, and that's SLEEP.
I crash. Legs up, belly exposed, completely out of commission. And don't even THINK about disturbing me. I'll go from lovable little brother to disgruntled old man faster than you can say, "Who's a good boy?"
I've got to recharge! Tomorrow is coming, and there's a whole new day of living to squeeze in!
My lucky dog life is all about Sunny. He's the calm to my chaos, the brains to my zoomies and the big brother who keeps us together. He may not chase me, share my enthusiasm or appreciate my early-morning acrobatics, but he's always there. And wherever he goes, you can bet your biscuits I'll be right there.
Because the only thing better than being a lucky dog is having a big brother to share it with.
Now, where'd he go?
SUNNY! WAIT FOR MEEEE!