Emotional support human

I just wanted to take a moment to applaud- or at least acknowledge- my dog's emotional growth. That sounds insane but wait. When he came to live with me he was quiet and meek. He was an ANGEL and I was amazed that I'd received this precious baby boy. Then he got comfortable and started destroying birdseed bags and climbing onto chairs to pee on them and no one believed me that he was anything other than a sweet baby precious angel. His personality started to show and I learned that he was brave and maybe a little reckless. He loves all dogs and only shows aggression when he's hanging from another dog's mouth. That only happened once, with a breed you wouldn't expect it from, and faster than either of us owners could react. That is the only dog Gus stopped wanting to be friends with. Well, that one and the Corgi that antagonizes him, but he forgets and starts over with that dog every time they meet. He's like Dory when it comes to making friends. 

He also showed me his fears, like abandonment or a running dishwasher. For years now I have been running my dishwasher at bedtime, when we could be safely snuggled in the bedroom with a movie on to cover the noise. I try hard not to ever run it during the day and I would never start the dishwasher and then leave him alone with it. He used to leave the room as soon as I'd start it but in the last couple years he has worked up to going into the kitchen to get a drink or even check his bowl while the evil machine was humming. Lately he's stayed snoozing in his bed, seemingly unfazed. I was just trying to plan out my bath vs dishwasher timing and realized I can probably try running it in the daytime now, though I'll still watch him for stress and take him for a walk if it starts worrying him. I'm just impressed with his growth and trust in his safety. It makes me wonder what kind of slow growth I've had going on over the past few years. He's a good model for bravery, resilience, and optimism. He's also no longer afraid that I'll throw him in the dumpster, but maybe that's because he can't see anymore.