Does Size Really Matter??

24 Nov 2013

A friend from New York recently commented on the height of my husband, after seeing a photo of my family on our refrigerator.  “Your husband is shorter than you are.” he stated, with a tinge of disbelief.  “Yes.” I said.  “Oh.” he said, sounding as if he were not quite sure how to process that information.  Perhaps he had different expectations of what my husband would look like or perhaps I’m reading the situation all wrong.  In any case, I began to think about size.  

Does size really matter?  Surely, in situations where sheer hulkiness, height and bicep circumference plays a roll (think professional boxers, body guards, bouncers, Mr Universe contests), then, yes, size really does matter.  Also, if you want to carry a whole lot of people across the Atlantic Ocean, you need a very, very big boat or airplane, so then, yes, size really does matter.  Furthermore, it’s no good trying to pass a big bulky camel through the eye of a very tiny needle; you need very slim thread for that, so then, yes, size really does matter. 

     

But, when my husband gives me ‘that look’ with kind, gentle eyes, and then holds out his hand to take mine, size makes no difference at all (unless you count the humongous size of his heart!).  Our daughter is shorter than me, as well, but she is the PERFECT size for a girlie hug (which calms my soul and gives me love).  Our son is the tallest of us all, but at 5’ 9” you could hardly say he’s tall for a man.  Yet, his intelligence, his capacity for kindness, his tender heart and his love for Jesus make me proud to call him my son.

The one thing about Border Terriers (or most terriers, for that matter) is that they think they are a big dog.  Digger weighs all of 22 pounds and yet, in his eyes, he’s a massive, horse of a dog that boxes in the heavy-weight division.  If threatened (by another dog, a bike, an unsuspecting jogger), he dives in for the fight.  He’s scrappy and uses his whole being to stand his ground.  Mostly, this frustrates me because it’s no good chasing a bicycle which can outrun him or an innocent jogger who just wants to get in her morning jog before work. This sort of ‘standing your ground’ gets him nowhere and makes me crazy!  What I admire, however, is his insistence and his faith that, even at the ripe old age of 12, he’s still got it going on!!  In his eyes, he’s a giant amongst giants, not a Goliath, but a David, small and scrappy, fierce and unafraid. He pulls out the big guns when needs be.  On the other hand, I have seen him gently and carefully greet the tiniest of puppies, freshly weaned and exploring the Nickey Line, so as not to harm or scare them.  I’ve witness his taking a small doggy treat from my (then 10 years old) daughter’s hand, doing so carefully, patiently, sweetly so as not to bite her fingers.

What about my faith in me, in God?  Do I think of myself as small and scrappy yet fierce and unafraid? Do I think that I, as David, can confront my Goliaths head on, using only what I have and what God has given me?  On one occasion, when Jesus was out with his own disciples, they were approached by a desperate, distraught and overwhelmed father whose son was desperately ill and was out of his mind. The father had asked Jesus’ disciples for help but they could do nothing.  Jesus ordered that the boy be brought to him and then proceeded to heal him of his affliction.  When asked why they couldn't heal the boy, Jesus says to the disciples, “because you’re not yet taking God seriously. The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, ‘Move!’ and it would move. There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle.” (Matthew 17:14-20, the Message translation)  

I look at Digger and admire his courage, tenacity, strength.  He takes himself seriously and uses what God has given him to do what he has to do.  Then I realize that Jesus promised me that I when I trust him I would not only do what he did but would do even greater things than he did on earth. (John 14:11-14)  Me??? Do greater things than Jesus did??? Seriously???  So I’m told.   It seems, then, when it comes to size, it’s not the size of  MY body, My bank account, My Ego, My Reputation, My work, MY faith, or My strength that matters at all.  What matters is the size of my God and the enormity of what he has promised, the vastness of his faithfulness, the overwhelming immensity of his grace and the limitlessness of his love.  When he is for me, who can be against me?

p.s. This is a photo sent to me by my dear, dear friend, Patti. Her two dogs and her husband are on this sofa.  If I were to guess, I would say that Gemma was the Alpha Dog in this situation (no offense, Unc Da!).  Thanks, Patti, for sharing this with me.

                                             (l to r) Gemma, Sophie and Unc Da!

Rockin' with Mick Jagger

12 Nov 2013

I really missed Digger yesterday.  I’m sure he’s in good hands with Joel, who is house/dog sitting for us this week, but Digs would have loved a walk in Central Park yesterday.  The weather was chilly but clear and sunny and I was with my friend, Brenda. 

Brenda is the CEO of NYC Navigator (http://nycnavigator.com/), the international relocation firm that helped us with our move to New York. She’s kind and generous and fun-loving and I knew when I first met her that we would be great friends.  If you ever relocate to the USA, call Brenda and she’ll do you proud!  Yesterday, I went for walk with her in the park and she brought along Mick Jagger!  I met Mick yesterday and let me say that he is such a cutie pie, much cuter than his human name sake (no offence, human Mick!!!)  Brenda’s Mick is a cavalier king charles spaniel, just 12 weeks old and desperate to explore this wonderful planet on which we live.  

I had forgotten how ‘full of beans’ (as Brenda says) a new puppy is. Digger, being 12 years old, is still quite feisty for his age, but he is slowing down and tends to stick to the path and not wander off so much anymore. That beaten path is comfortable for him and besides, it’s probably becoming more difficult for him to see.  But Mick – well, it was a good thing he was on a lead in Central Park yesterday. With his sense of adventure and wonder for this new world, not to mention a very keen nose for new smells, Mick would have taken off down the pavement (sidewalk, for you Americans) after some squirrel or dog or scent or leaf blowing in the wind!  His enthusiasm for life is infectious and loads of people commented on how cute and sweet and lovely he is.  Indeed, being around the fun-loving Mick made me feel happy!

For Mick, life is for the living.  He’s like a Star Fleet recruit, on a mission with the Star Ship Enterprise – to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no dog has gone before.  Nor is he a respecter of persons. He doesn’t care if you’re black or white; pretty or ugly; rich or poor; living in a mansion or on the streets; all perfumed up or in need of a stick of deodorant.  He couldn’t care less if you are educated or never finished high school. What he cares about is playing, licking faces, being petted, loved-on and pleasing his loving Brenda.  As long as you’re loving and kind to him, he’ll stick around to love you.

Thank you, Mick, for reminding me to live life because life is for the living!

Brenda and Mick in Central Park

Friend or Foe? Meet and Greet

2 Nov 2013     Digger is a red grizzle (referring to his colour) and, as you saw from his photo is previous blogs, he is grey, brownish-red and black.  He weighs about 10 kilograms (22 pounds or 1 stone, 8, depending on where you live!) and is considered to be a small dog. The thing about Digger is that, mentally, he is a big dog.  I’m sure when he looks in a mirror he sees himself as an enormous an Afghan Hound, a Spanish Canary Dog or even possibly an English Mastiff.  Why do I think he thinks he’s so big? When we are walking in the morning and we come upon other dogs, he crouches down on his legs, with his belly touching the ground, so as to make himself nearly invisible. In fact, because of his colour, he is quite un-seeable on the muddy path.  He remains very still as the dog approaches. Is this dog a friend or a foe?? He waits, waits, and waits some more.

Then, when the other dog is near enough, Digger springs up, surprising the dog with his gargantuan size. Well, gargantuan in Digger’s mind anyway.  He goes from nearly invisible to, voila, a standing, tall, statuesque big (little) dog.  It doesn’t matter whether the approaching dog is a big or small breed.  Digger must first assess the approaching dog (from a position of invisibility) then springs his surprise from a position of height.  

Then he does, what I call, the ‘meet and greet’ dance.  With tales wagging, the two dogs start to sniff each other’s back side to ascertain whether or not they know each other.  Once this is established, they either remain playing. Or they move on, because one or the other or both do not like the smell or they don’t feel comfortable or they feel threatened.  Sometimes, he takes a dislike to a dog because he smells aggression or fear. When this happens, the atmosphere gets tense, and I know Digger and the other dog will possibly have a fight to sort out who’s the top dog.

I’m not a dog nor an animal behaviouralist, but it seems to me that this ritual is a great leveller amongst dogs and establishes whether or not they will be friends or not. Big or small, dominant or submissive, friend or foe, you sniff each other’s privates and there is nothing to hide and no secrets.  Once you’ve sussed out the other’s stinky parts, you can decide whether you want to be friends or not.

As an older dog, Digger has smelled his share of stinky parts.  And yet, he still loves the meet and greet. He still loves to get to know new dogs, have a little run around, be part of a crowd of dogs who are romping in the field. He still wants to explore. The stinky bits don’t seem to have put him off. Yes, there are some dogs he lets pass by.  I’m not sure why (I really can’t be inside his head!) but he is cool with most dogs he meets.  He’s a friendly little dog who sees himself from a position of strength, height, not easily intimidated.  He knows who he is, what he is and what he’s capable of.  And he doesn’t mind the stinky parts.

Ok, my niece has sent in a photo of Frank and Finley, Digger's cousins.  Digger loves these two. They are most definitely friends!

Send Your Photos!

1 Nov 2013  It’s scandalously late this morning (9:38 am, for goodness sakes) and we’ve yet to venture out for our morning constitutional (walk, that is).  Digger is bored, bored, bored, waiting around for someone to do something besides sit on her computer blogging about him. Ok, I’ll keep it brief. 

THIS IS A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT:  If any of  you dog lovers/owners out there who would like for me to post your beloved dog’s photo within this blog, please send me a .jpg file via a facebook message or on google+, and I’ll try to put it in at some point. Mick Jagger has already been posted in one of the blogs and I thank his owner, Brenda, for letting me to it. 

I look forward to seeing all your photos.  More Adventures of Digger to come soon.