A Time to Be Real
Hello friends,
The picture of Happy Dog says everything I want to say today. Sometimes, you've just got to shout it. Happy Dog has been shouting his opinion all of his life. He is the Police Pup of all four dogs, especially our biggest one.
At birthday celebrations, it is Happy Dog's job to tackle the present and rip the paper off, as though he is ripping into an intruder. When he is tucked safely under the covers, any movement near him, will learn its lesson quickly, as he savagely grabs the blanket and gives it a good shake.
Another job he has is to get my husband's water bottle under control, by grabbing it and running down the hall. Then he tears off the label, with a bark that says, "So there!!!" But that's not all. He also rebukes my husband's slipper. If my husband is wearing the offending felon, Happy will grab a hold and hang on, furiously struggling against the reprobate. Often he wins the battle, by seizing the slipper, deftly removing it from the victim; then he dashes down the hall. First one way; then the other. Up and down the hall he goes. HERE HE COMES!!! THERE HE GOES!!! And the game doesn't stop until Happy is finished.
Happy Dog is the most joyful being I know. He is a clown, a mischief maker, an authoritarian, and the fiercest, most loyal friend I have. He would die for me. No dog is bigger. No object too hard to face down. And he does everything with a kind of joyous vigour. This dog has a lot to teach, and he teaches me every day.
You see, when I brought Happy Dog home, I was suffering from depression. He changed me with his happy heart. That is why his official name is Sir Happy Heart. Of course, I began to, then, call him Happy Dog.
I don't know how long God will give me with my little Happy Dog. I hope a long, long time. A few years back, I expressed my fears about losing my little boy, to my Father in heaven:
Excerpt from Jaye Lewis' Prayer for My Little Boy
I know, Lord, there will come a day,
When I'll have to say "good-bye."
Yet, even then I'll trust in You;
Although it makes me cry.
I trust in You to carry me
Through that dark and lonely place;
And heal my heart, as I recall,
His little, laughing face.
I know that you will be there,
And you'll wipe my tears away;
And perhaps in Your great mercy,
I’ll be with him, there, one day.
The Bible says, in Heaven
We'll be free from every care;
But I can't imagine Heaven
Unless Happy Dog is there.
So, if I am presumptuous,
I trust You'll understand
That I’ll willingly walk the road ahead,
If You'll only hold my hand.
© Jaye Lewis, 2001
When I'll have to say "good-bye."
Yet, even then I'll trust in You;
Although it makes me cry.
I trust in You to carry me
Through that dark and lonely place;
And heal my heart, as I recall,
His little, laughing face.
I know that you will be there,
And you'll wipe my tears away;
And perhaps in Your great mercy,
I’ll be with him, there, one day.
The Bible says, in Heaven
We'll be free from every care;
But I can't imagine Heaven
Unless Happy Dog is there.
So, if I am presumptuous,
I trust You'll understand
That I’ll willingly walk the road ahead,
If You'll only hold my hand.
© Jaye Lewis, 2001
There is not a dog that I have ever known, who has captured my heart, the way that Happy has. He is under my skin and in my heart. I would die for him, and he knows it.
So, why am I sharing this with you today? Because I have seen much division and derision in my country, during this election season. The graft and corruption is unspeakable, yet it has been exposed. Sometimes you've just got to scrape out a sore. I've seen so much pretense, and if I hear, one more time, "my friends," I think I will scream. What? Am I stupid? YOU'RE NOT MY FRIEND! MY DOG WOULD MAKE A BETTER PRESIDENT!
Happy Dog would take the miscreants by their ankle, and he would shake the daylights out of them. Then he would bark them to attention, and march them off to jail. Then it's bread and water for the lot of them! Happy Dog is tough. He knows the right thing to be. He shouts it to the sky every day. BE REALLLLL!!!!!!! Be real. It's not hard. If you are real, then the citizens who vote for you will shout for joy.
Father in heaven, grant us the grace to recognize what is real within our candidates in this, our election season. May they state their case, without rhetoric. Please, Lord, show us the way, even into the voting booth. Help us to look at the issues and the candidates, and let us see who will understand and tackle those issues with the fervor and courage of my little dog. Help us to see clearly, just which one is real.
With love,
Jaye Lewis
