Day #14: 100 Days Gratitude Challenge 2017

Day #14 – Dog
100 Days Gratitude Challenge 2017
Do you have a dog or a pet that you take care of? You are one of the lucky ones.
Unconditional love can be experienced by those who care for a dog. This is one creature that has been created just so that you can experience pure love. He is always there to welcome you back home without qualifying the welcome. Did you get me my bone? You forgot to rub my ear on the way out. Yesterday you shouted at me. You have not looked at me for the last 2 days. Why are you so preoccupied? None of these qualifications exist for him. He will come and look at me intently to draw my attention if I’m ignoring him. Next, he will push his nose at me if I’m unaware of his presence. If I still ignore him, he’s likely to lean his weight on me.  After all this if I’m still not looking at him, then I should be prepared for him to jump up plonk his front paws on my shoulders and look deep into my eyes till I pay the attention he seeks.
He is not shy about asking for what he wants. He does not hold a grudge if I fail to do my part in this relationship. He is completely accepting of me whether it is sunny, rainy, cloudy or stormy. He accepts me whether I brought home the bacon or not. Now don’t read too much into this.
A dog teaches you how to stay healthy. He makes sure that you get your daily minimum dose of exercise.
A dog teaches you to be generous and giving. He makes sure that you worry about his meals and ensure that he has his whether you have had yours or not.
A dog teaches you how to care. He makes sure that you groom him and keep him clean whether you are busy or not.
A dog teaches you, unconditional love. He will accept you and love you no matter what.
A dog teaches you to think of things other than your work and challenges. He distracts you and takes your mind away from them with his presence.
On the flip side, a dog is also a lot of work and commitment. Grooming, feeding, ensuring he’s taken care of well when you are all travelling, keeping him free of ticks and hair fall and ensuring he’s healthy is a lot for today’s busy lifestyle. You are responsible for his safety and well being. Now that is a very difficult burden for some people. In a fit of excitement people buy a pup and within a few months some of them realise the enormity of the decision and give the dog away. This is extremely cruel to the dog because he is part of the family and the patriarch has given away a member of the family because they could not manage.
Understand all the upsides and downsides before you bring a pup home. And once you have brought the pup home, he or she is there to stay. The benefits of owning a dog come



to those who are willing to pay the price of responsibility. Are you responsible enough to see it through?
I am grateful to Alfie my Labrador who turns 7 years on December 28th. He has brought in so much for me and my family. We have all changed for the better because of him. We have learned to open our hearts and experience unconditional love. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day #27: Our world (100 days gratitude challenge)

Image
Day #27: Our world 100 days of gratitude This morning at 5 am when I took Alfie for a walk I noticed the road was filled with the remnants of yesterday's festivities. Paper, cardboard, plastic covers. gunpowder, rocket launchers, bottles, buckets, mugs, and tons of muck. I feel sorry for the cleaning staff who have to labour to clear this. Rains may help if it comes pouring now. We humans have a unique relationship with our planet. We believe that whatever we do our planet will correct itself and come back to how we found it. We don't know or care who is cleaning up behind us. Fortunately for us, our planet has taken care of itself so far. It has taken all the abuse we threw at it and corrected itself. I wonder how long this party can continue before it gives up. Do you notice how our planet is learning to adapt herself to our ways? She is over 4.5 billion years old. She managed to see her way through dinosaurs for à few million years. Primitive mankind is about 200,000 y...
Read more

Day 74: Smile 100 Day Gratitude Challenge

Image
Day 74: Smile 100 Day Gratitude Challenge Today I was going with my friend to the city. At the toll he handed out a biscuit packet to the toll collector after swiping his toll card.  The toll collector first wondered  what was being handed to him and then when he realised what it was, his face broke into a big smile. It absolutely lit up his face and all of us in the car smiled in return.  It struck me then that a smile will almost always elicit a return smile. It’s the simplest and easiest thing to give anyone and you will get it back in return multifold. It improves the mood of the giver and the receiver. I’m grateful for the smile. It is the simplest and warmest gift we can gift anyone. It is easy to do and there is no limit to how much we can give. Benefits of Smiling ·         Smiling is contagious Even in bad situations, if you smile, others are likely to mimic the expression. ·         Smiling lowers stress ...
Read more

Day #53: Ability to stand up after every fall (100 Day Gratitude Challenge)

Image
Day #53:     Ability to stand up after every fall (100 Day Gratitude Challenge) Have you seen a baby learn to walk? The baby makes countless attempts to stand before actually standing isn’t it? The baby first learns to roll over and after many weeks becomes good at it. Then she would attempt to sit up and will fall in the attempt a thousand times before actually being able to sit up. Finally, the baby will hold on to something and pull herself up to be able to stand on her feet. She will wobble back and forth and plonk down and then promptly try once again. This attempt again will be repeated a hundred times before she finally learns to stand. Only after this does she keep one foot in front of the other and take the first few tentative steps. The art of walking cannot be mastered in just one stroke. We all know it. But when we become adults we suddenly start believing that whatever I take up I must do well and I shall do it well the very first attempt...
Read more