Night prowling with Archie

I love walking at nighttime. Always have.

There's something therapeutic about walking after the sun goes down. In the dark, with the stars dotted in a velvety sky, it's peaceful.

My favourite nights for walking are in spring, and early summer. Cool but not cold, dark but not pitch black. It smells fresh and clean. Birds chirp sleepily in the dusk; dogs bark in the distance.

Sometimes, there's a wave of laughter and smoke and sausages if there's a summertime barbeque happening. Othertimes, you can walk through the wafting aroma of someone's winter dinner, emanating from a warm house.

I walked every night when pregnant with Jack, in a desperate attempt to alleviate my morning sickness (which was actually night sickness). Back then, Christian would walk with me and my growing bump because we didn't have anyone else to worry about. He would laugh at me, as I narrated the dinners people were cooking in each house as we walked. I would either inhale deeply and happily, or retch violently, depending on the aroma.

My night-walking has been intermittent since Phoebe was born, simply because the act of organising more than one baby in the dinner-bath-bed routine took more time and energy than I had. More often than not, when Jack and Phoebe were tiny and I was teaching, I had enough in the tank to get through the day with the bare minimum. Walking out the door by myself, for myself, was out of the question.

During my pregnancy with the Mouse, time spent on my feet teaching and chasing after two toddlers meant that my pelvis objected, loudly. So I looked forward to resuming my night-walking after her arrival, especially since she was a summer baby.

Unfortunately, ten young men put paid to my perambulations after dark when they stormed our house and broke my family. February 21, 2010 was the day I learned to be frightened of my own shadow. I was unable to go out after dark by myself; would jump at loud noises, especially men shouting; and felt completely vulnerable even in the supermarket car park.

Six months ago, I nagged my husband into getting my beautiful Archie. Sir Archibald the Bouncy, my gorgeous black and white border collie, is definitely hard work. He runs like a mad thing. He pulls clothes off the line (occasionally, and only if they are flapping enticingly). He barks madly at the drops of rainwater that fall into his water bowl (apparently this is enough to drive him insane).

But I am immensely proud of him. We have just graduated from puppy school (with honours if I do say so myself!) after an intensive 12 week course. Archie can sit, stay, drop, come, give, and walk. He can jump through hoops (literally!! I made him do it last week), run through tunnels and leap over obstacles.

Most of all, Archie loves us. He especially loves me. And, being an energetic young border collie, he loves to walk.

So after 18 months of being afraid, I have finally got my night walks back, all thanks to Archie. When the children are relatively settled and the kitchen is tidy, Archie and I slip out the front door, leaving Daddy in charge. We only ever walk for half an hour, but it's enough to shake his sillies out and to find my mojo again.

When I'm walking with Arch, I feel safe. He might only be a pup, but he's a big boy. We walk (or rather, I walk and he bounces) the streets of our town, sticking to well-lit areas that we both know well. The local hoons serenade us with wheelies and burnouts, and the train boom gates send their melodic ding-ding-ding through the still night air. As we make a wide path to miss the local pub, the delicate sounds of yobbos having a ball at the TAB echo across the way. Dogs howl, brakes screech, the Woolworths sign glows like a neon god.

For now, this is my paradise. When our house is finally finished, Archie and I will have some lovely streets and parks to explore. I must admit, our soon-to-be new neighbourhood is very, very safe. But for the moment, I am happy to walk at night again in my noisy town with it's uneven footpaths and numerous Commodores. I am so very, very grateful for Archie. He has given me back my night prowling. With any luck, we will walk at night together for many years to come.