Two dogs, a girl, and a lesson

Having two small dogs is full of adventures. Having grown up with only big dogs, it takes a while to get used to the quirks of 2 dogs that combined weigh just over 20 pounds. Although I was never a fan of small dogs when I was younger, I've grown to love my two companions. Goose and Maverick live up to their names on a daily basis; Goose is very silly and Maverick likes to get away with whatever he can. They aren't exactly like their Top Gun namesakes, but they are entertaining nonetheless.

One of the oddities about having small dogs is that when you walk them you can use a connector to join their two harnesses together. This way you only have to carry one leash and the dogs can calmly walk side-by-side each other. That's the theory at least. My dogs, again living up to their names, like to do the exact opposite of what's intended. Although they've gotten the hang of both walking the same direction if they meet an obstacle, almost without fail, they will choose to try to go around it in completely opposite ways. Even when they are both going to the same place, they battle over which side of the sidewalk they will choose to walk on. One of the dogs (Goose) weighs nearly twice the other, so he usually wins, but that doesn't keep Maverick from making his position known. And so their stubborn wills cause an untold number of mishaps and reprimands as we strive to get towards our destination.

Recently, it occurred to me that my dogs' desires to have their own way has a lesson for me as well. You see, just as my dogs are thethered together when they walk, I have made a commitment to walk life's journey alongside a wonderful man...my husband. However, my commitment to him isn't momentary, but life-long. So, just as with my dogs, it's important that we are walking in the same direction. However, equally important is that when we encounter an obstacle, we go around it together. Sure we could each struggle to get our own way, and maybe eventually we would get to the same spot on the path, but when we both take the course and the bumps side-by-side, the journey is so much sweeter for each of us.

What's true in my relationship with my husband is also true in our relationships with God. He wants us to walk with Him on our journey, not struggle for our own way. He wants us to be tethered so tightly to Him that we view obstacles from His perspective, and combat them accordingly. When we put our faith and trust in Him, knowing that He knows the way, we can rest assured that we will arrive at our desired destination. And we can do so, without struggling to ensure our own position and demands.

I sometimes doubt that my dogs will ever completely learn how to walk calmly when they are tethered together. However, there are two other dogs in the neighborhood that give me hope. They walk in partnership - seeing each obstacle as their obstacle; seeing each break in the path as one they will walk together. May I approach my relationship with my spouse in the same way. And even more so, my relationship with God.


**Bonus points to any reader who can name the TV show that provided the inspiration for the title of this blog. :-)