When we adopted Smokey, we knew that we were eventually going to let him sleep in bed with us. However, since Michael had never had a dog before, he worried that a 10-week-old puppy might have an accident in bed. We bought a cage to be Smokey's crate and put it on the floor a foot away from my side of the bed so he would feel close to us.
One night after a couple of months had passed, just before Michael turned out his bedside lamp, I noticed that Smokey was biting down on the wire of his cage and trying to get closer to me. I checked with an online schnoodle discussion group that I belonged to and asked if he was old enough to sleep with us. After being told that most of them welcomed their puppies in bed a day or two after adopting them, we decided to let Smokey sleep with us.
You've never seen such a happy dog in your life. He positioned himself between Michael and me and licked us and just about wagged off his tail. After a few minutes of snuggling with him, we turned off the light.
But we didn't get much sleep that night. Every ten to fifteen minutes, all night long, Smokey would reach out to touch one or the other of us with his forepaw. I think that he couldn't believe that his little doggie dream had come true and that he was finally being allowed to sleep with the adults in his "pack."
The second night was a little bit better, but Smokey still continued to reach out and touch us to reassure himself that he was really in our bed. Michael had a harder time than I did sleeping through the on-and-off contact, so we eventually trained Smokey to sleep on the other side of me. I tend to sleep in fetal position facing the edge of the bed, so Smokey curls up in a ball next to my chest. If it's a warm night, he will eventually move down to the foot of the bed, but usually he stays next to me all night long.
As I was thinking about much reassurance Smokey needed that he was really and finally with us, I was reminded of one of the central difficulties of being human. We cannot see God or touch him. Sometimes, it is hard to believe in his love, especially when things in our lives go differently from what we'd hoped and we can't understand God's plan. Just as Smokey kept reaching out to Michael or me, we keep asking God for a sign. In both cases, the love is there all the time. We just need a little help believing in it.
18 comments:
Hi I came to your blog via another blog thatb eventually led back to Jay, I hope I can find my way home again! This is a lovely post. I love animals too, I didn't think he'd last long in the cage somehow.Give him abiscuit from me.
My cat, by contrast, has always been wonderfully confident sleeping with me, or in snuggling up to absolutely anyone. I wish I could have such belief that God and those around all love me...
I believe God wants as much reassurance as we do. It's a mutual thing.
I love your sweet Smokey! What a sweetie.
Oh...what love! This is such a great photo of Smokey, and what an incredibly sweet story..
Janice, thank you for visiting my blog.
Grace, I have trouble believing it too many times.
L.J., I like the idea of its being mutual.
Hi, Dawn! I'm fond of that photograph too. I think it caputures his sweet nature.
Precious story! Yes.....desiring the signs from God is an ongoing issue for me. My church would say its wrong to look for signs, or expect them, or want them......signifies a lack of faith, of course. It could be that I just have no faith.
Recently, I read that signs are ususally there, but we Westerners miss them, because they inhabit the regions on the periphery of what we are focused on. We fail to view the whole picture.
Ruth, your blog is a treasure-trove of thought-provoking insights.
Awwwwh! I just love your Dog Parables!
My youngest cat (now almost 4)sleeps by my side every night and frequently reaches out a paw to lightly touch my arm. I find it quite reassuring.
BTW.. how is Smokey's knee?
We've been pondering the "bed" question with Lucy and Linus this week, so you've got me right where I'm living. :-)
And this is all true, BTW. Lovely.
Shades of Little Eddie. Little Eddie (who is some kind of terrier/weinerish dog/poodle mix) likes to put his paw on my face in bed, just to pat it. Boomer, OTOH (the chow/shepherd mix) likes to go nose to nose and smell your breath (esp. if it has garlic in it.)
Yes, God likes to pat our face, too!
Beautifully written, Ruth! I am so glad that God always does reassure us when we reach out to Him!
ROFL, if we had the dogs in the bed there would be no room for us. Plus they stink! Always looking for a mudhole to dip into them too. But the cats all 4 of them visit throughout the night. Our female is pretty much a constant, but one male, usually snuggles in the morning with me. The rest come and go, unless its cold!
I think it's an apt metaphor for our relationship with God. We do look for reassurance, and frankly I think signs are there, we just don't always choose to see them.
You know how I love your dog parables Ruth, always brilliant and so on!
The imagery of this one is particularly poignant. Thank you!
Love the Smokester stories. We do crave reassurance like he does...sometimes we get it from 'angels in skin', like you, my friend, and your writing.
I see God in you and in all my loved ones so when I struggle and need reminding I remember to reach out.
Oh my...I think that is why I come here, Ruth. I am reaching out to pat you with my forepaw.
Aw, Joan, I'm so touched.
Ah. So true. And I see my little dog as a reminder of God's love for me, too. Javier is such a blessing ... most of the time!
That's a good post.
We made the opposite decision: no dogs in bed with us. Firstly, there was asthma to consider and dust mite allergy, and secondly, greyhounds are far too big for me to want to share a bed with!
Smokey reminds me so much of my childhood schnauzer, Bonzo. Bonzo slept with my brother every single night and when he brought his fiance home to meet us, she jumped up between the two of them on the couch and scooted her way in. She needed to know she still mattered.
Lovely post.
What a sweet parable! I love this one. Rosie sleeps that way too...she puts her back feet on Andy and her front feet on me...all night long! We've got a rub-your-belly ritual we go thru every night. If one of us stays up later than the other...she waits up until we've both gone to bed. Dogs are so cool that way!!
XOXOXOX
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