We have a new puppy! Her name is Lola. A foundling weighing only a pound or two, this bony little sweetie has stolen our hearts and is turning poor Chico’s world upside down.
Chico is a people dog, though he does get along with Angel and Little Bit, the geriatric lady dogs belonging to Todd’s brother and mom. We were a little nervous about bringing home a puppy, but the poor thing didn’t have anywhere else to go.
Chico didn’t know what to think at first. Tail at high curl, the scruff on his neck standing on end, he perked his radar ears and began a steady orbit around our baby girl, sniffing and sneezing as if he found her very presence offensive.
Lola was unfazed. I don’t think it’s the first time she’s been treated like a second-class citizen. She has a gimpy leg and a slight under-bite, which I find irresistible, but I think that may be the reason she was wandering alone in a field rather than playing with a family somewhere. It’s purely conjecture, but I’m guessing the breeder couldn’t sell her.
Determined to be Chico’s friend, Lola has been following him everywhere today, marking everything that he marks in the back yard, eating his food, squeezing in next to him between the kids on the couch, and playing with his toys. Her persistence seems to have paid off. In a few short hours, Chico’s attitude has morphed from disdain to annoyance to tolerance to–we think–fondness. We put Lola in our bathroom earlier before leaving the house, and Chico checked on her, sniffing under the door and looking at us as if we were being cruel to lock her up.
Yes, I think everything is going to work out just fine. I’m really not too surprised at the turn-around. How could Chico possibly stay frustrated with little Lola? She’s a puppy, after all. She’s going to act like one. Surely he knows that.
Now, if she’d been a full-grown stray and come in acting the way Lola did, I think we would have had a problem. Never mind the fact that many strays have never had a positive domestic experience and so are, in many ways, still puppies, uneducated and inexperienced, making messes inside, crossing personal boundaries, making noise at inappropriate times, etc. I don’t think Chico would have had the patience for that.
In that way, I am a lot like him.
I love working with babies, children, and teenagers, but I lack patience with adults. A friend of mine puts it this way, “Kids are kids. Adults have no excuse.” I’ll admit, it’s tempting to judge others according to our own standards, but there are two problems with that. We are not to judge, and our own standards are not God’s standards.
I can’t stop thinking about what is happening to Paula Deen. Poor woman. I’ll just say this. I am so glad that only thirty or so people (I hope that’s all it was!) heard me stick my foot in my mouth this week. There is absolutely no way for me to take back what I said or even explain my thought process. Though my intentions were completely benign, no one but God sees my heart, and what I said was not edifying. I’m sure if I had been on the hearing end of that radio call, I would have had plenty to say to myself about arrogance, careless words, servanthood, humility, etc. Anyway…
Here’s what you and I need to remember. The rhythm of God is different in each person’s life. We mature in different areas at different rates depending on the Christian education we have received and the experiences God has allowed us to have. What one of us knows for sure, another is just learning and vice-versa. Those who we think are behind us in some ways are probably ahead of us in others. We should extend the same grace and forgiveness to others that we want extended to us when we make mistakes because it’s gonna happen!
“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2
This just in….Chico gave Lola a kiss!
It’s a start.
Looks like the puppy is teaching the big dog a new trick, how to make friends. Go figure!
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