The window wait routine

There’s something nearly adorable in the way some dogs lean at the window awaiting their person's arrival home. You see it on videos and pictures everywhere on the internet. The dog sitting upright on the couch or perhaps just leaning at the window like a little soldier. Ears perked up. Eyes fixed forward. Waiting patiently. And the second they hear the vehicle pull up or the sound of familiar tread on the front porch, they lose it. The tail begins to wag. Some of them even begin to howl or bounce in circles before the door is even opened.

What is this behavior that causes people to stop and pay attention. It is not just cute. It is loyal. It is like the sort of relationship we dream of but cannot have in real life. A dog in the window isn't looking at the clock. It isn't trying to keep time. It isn't mad you're late or bitter. It is just wishing you'd appear. And if you do, it is over the moon.

They say others believe that dogs have a sixth sense, that they just instinctively know when it is five thirty and time for the person to drive down the driveway. Others are certain they detect some kind of cue such as hearing the growl of a specific engine several blocks in the distance or some kind of change in light as the sun goes down. Either method they just seem to pick this habit up for themselves without instruction. No one sits a dog down and hands them the work schedule. They simply kind of figure it out. And then it just becomes second nature.

What is so amazing is how predictable some dogs are with it. Every weekday, same time. Window duty. Like they have a job. And perhaps they do in their head. That greeting reunion could be the highlight of their day. And the anticipation is only foreplay.

It has the ability to make people feel truly seen in a way that is difficult to describe. No small talk. No questions. Just a dog sitting in the glass like your returning is the most significant thing about it all. There is strength there. It reminds people that they are missed. Not for something that they do. Simply because who they are, is missed.

There is also the aspect that not all dogs do this. Some are more relaxed. Some aren't all that interested in the window. They express their affection otherwise. But the ones that do wait like this appear to have a routine about it. Like they discipline themselves for it. You might be able to set a clock to some of them.

And really it isn't difficult to see why individuals take comfort from it. With all life's uncertainties and changes, the familiar face of a furry presence looking out from behind a window patiently waiting is one of those little things that seem concrete. It doesn't take much at all. It is not dramatic. It simply is.

Perhaps part of the reason why it is so great is just how uncomplicated. No phone required. No likes or comments. Just a dog. A window. And a moment that means the world to them. Some dogs probably do not even know that they are having this kind of impact on their person. But they do.

There is maybe a little lesson there. Being there. Coming. Waiting in expectation. It is not glamorous but it makes a mark. Even when people don't talk about it out loud.

In the evening a dog in the window is just being natural. But to the returning one it can be a reminder that home is something. That someone has counted down the seconds and it counted that they came back.

And perhaps that is enough.