Primping for the Selfies

Today is such a beautiful, sunny day. Bow and I decided we would go outside together and take some selfies. Before we went outside, I decided to brush my hair. Bow seemed to think that he needed to do the same, because when I was experimenting with camera angles, I suddenly saw him behind me, brushing his hair. He was very diligent about it.

Everything has been blooming lately, nature putting forth its most attractive face.

The apple blossoms have opened wide, even though there are still no pollinators in sight.

The daffodils are in full bloom, and the peach blossoms are doing their part.

No wonder Bow also wanted to look his best for his photo shoot in full sunlight.

He needed his chance to shine, too. He waited patiently for me to find just the right angle.

Grooming, Implements and Mirror Neurons

When I look at Bow, I can read his expressions. It is not hard to tell what he is feeling, as his facial expressions often mirror my own.

Looking at this picture of Bow eating an apple, can you tell what he is feeling? Let your face resolve itself into a similar expression. How do you feel? We have mirror neurons that allow us to put ourselves into somebody else's shoes, to let us imagine what it would be like to be doing what they are doing.

Can you almost taste that big, juicy, red delicious apple as Bow bites into it? That isn't just your imagination. Those are your mirror neurons firing.

Bow has mirror neurons, too. When he sees me doing something, he sometimes gets it into his head that he should do that, too. I have long hair, but Bow's is short. Sometimes, when I have a messy task to take care of, I put my hair up into a bun. Bow watches, fascinated as I do that. Sometimes, he gathers as much of his hair as he can, and he tries in vain to put his hair up in a bun, too. Only he can't, because it's too short.

Yesterday, I was brushing my hair, and I thought Bow might like to help me brush my hair, too. He often grooms me, but he does that with his bare hands. I thought that if I handed him the brush, he might want to help me brush my hair.

But Bow was fascinated by the iPhone's small screen filming this, instead.  I had to tap him lightly to get his attention before I handed him the brush and asked whether he would like to brush my hair. Bow did not want to help me brush my hair. He took the brush, started to brush his own hair, and then reached for the iPhone, because he wanted to see himself doing it on the screen.

"Would you like to do what I'm doing?" can have two different meanings. It can mean, if I am brushing my hair, "would you like to brush my hair, too?" Or it can mean, instead,  "would you like to brush your hair?" People with healthy mirror neurons often take it the second way.