Dogs are truly man’s best friend
I am Maggie. My dad says that mom is a Boston Terrier. All I know about my dad is that he comes from a family with short legs and pointy snouts. What I am is not as important to me as who I am. I am me – a special individual with ideas about how things ought to be, so I take pen in paw to present my sentiments.
First, there is that issue about the recliner in the living room of my house. (Yes, it is my house because I live in it. The one who calls himself “Master” mistakenly thinks he is boss just because he weighs more than I do). Anyway, “first come, first served” is the rule I apply to almost everything in my world; therefore, I see no reason why I should not occupy the recliner if I get there before Master does. Why is it a problem if he sits on the floor to watch television?
There is a second issue concerning the recliner. When Master occasionally leaves his cup of coffee unattended on the nearby table, my sister climbs up on the lounge and slurps his coffee. Ever since he discovered her in the act, he has called her “Maxwell” instead of “Kelly,” her real name. I say the proper rule to apply in this case is, “unguarded game is fair game.” So why should Kelly be ridiculed for being smarter than her master?
Another issue concerns rules I do not understand about restaurants. Why am I banned from accompanying my family to restaurants? I have a perspicacious five-part opinion. (1) I get to come and go in the dining room at home, so what is the big deal about restaurants? (2) I do not eat with my mouth open or talk with food in my mouth. (3) I do not eat with my elbows on the table. (4) I clean up my plate spick and span, and even do the dishes for my sisters and brother. (5) I never wear my ball cap to the table and my hands, rather paws, are as clean as some two-legged folks I have seen coming out of restaurants. My view is that people with dirty hands and bad manners ought to wait in the car while I go in and enjoy myself.
And then, there is also this business about barking and biting. My master is very stern about my not barking at or biting strangers. What I have noticed, however, is that people bark at and bite each other all the time. Master thinks I do not watch television just because the only time I bark at the TV is when dogs appear on the screen, but I frequently see people killing each other or yelling at each other in TV stories. When Master watches Fox News, I often see people arguing about silly stuff and not about real life issues like “stay out of my food bowl” or “this is my spot before the fireplace, so keep away.” Why can’t I argue with people when I disagree with them? After all, I bark about important things.
Based on the previous sentiments, I think Maggie and I have some divergent notions. Of course, in the real world, the “Master” is not going to sit on the floor while Maggie occupies his recliner (she may share) and Maxwell had better cease participating in his coffee, unguarded or not. However, Maggie’s independent thoughts suggest a principle which we should not ignore.
When we humans have divergent ideas, we owe each other the courtesy of considering the other’s divergent viewpoint. Vicious words and bloody wars could often be avoided if we patiently consider matters from our neighbor’s vantage point instead of insisting that we have the only sensible perspective.
Truly, when one is right, he is right, but since no one has a corner on being right, we all should be willing to consider another’s assessment in our search for truth. Nevertheless, regardless of Maggie’s “perspicacious” objections, prevailing human opinions suggest that she must wait in the car while we eat at the restaurant. My opposing viewpoints notwithstanding, her opinions remain unaltered. I fear war might be imminent.
DeWitt Clinton of Dunbar is the minister for the Church of Christ Church on Connellsville Street in Uniontown.