A Man's Best Friend...

   I never liked living so close to the road, danger came in many forms when you live so close to the road with children, so the purchase of a dog became a high priority for me when we moved into a ranch style home set back on over a anchor of land. My hope was to keep my kids safe by having them occupied with a dog so that they could keep far enough from the road side where they could play safe. Besides, a bark from a dog, goes a long way to comfort those inside as it gave good warning for those out side. For bad guys love easy pickings and not too many adjustments,  a dog gave rise to too many of them. My desire for a dog also included one a protector slash (/) killer, one who loved home well enough to smile and gave all others a good showing of his teeth.
      A bushman mechanic friend of mine, was keeping some chow dogs on his property, and I notice they had a liter of pups running in the wild. Wild chow pups had a nice ring to me, for the little I knew about chow dogs and the fact that they were brought up in the wild, made them a prize find. Being a bushman my self, I already knew what to expect, so I handed the brother this or that and walked away with a small black, eye full pup. Pulling up to the house with a box in the front seat, the kids looked at the box and wanted to know what was inside. To their delight, a little tail wager greeted them and love was born right away. Without any preliminaries, the pup and his new handlers were at home in each others arms. The wild did not seem to agree with this puppy, and he wanted to let every one in the house know it was digging the heat. Needless to say, it was heart breaking to pick up its lifeless body not many days after, to bury it in nature far enough away that the smell of its decay could not cause the children to relive the hurt of its passing. Turned out that the pup, from living in the wild had picked up a sickness that took its young life, even before it got a chance to know its name real good.
     The road still laid in front of my house and the need for a dog demanded a replacement. So I went to the bushman to inquire of another puppy. He told me all the pups were sold except for the crazy one that hung out with it's mother. This puppy would bite rather then look at you, and was as mean as a junkyard dog on steroids. I told bushman I wanted him, he turned to me and said if you catch him you can have him. I looked at the back part of that pup as he bolted in the brush as if he spoke English. It became an all day affair, and before long he was in a box in the front of my car, growling at the sound of my breathing. I knew i had a killer, but just how I was going to get him to smile at the family was another matter. Both he and I shared space in my car as we drove away from his surroundings  and into mine. Once again pulling up to the house, with a box in the front seat, the children asked if it was another puppy. And without a notice they opened the box just a bit, to be greeted by poison arrow...he all but snapped, and the kids took a few steps back and in a terror gaze, broke a smile to each other and wondered what was the deal. Staying far enough back from me, to give me a clear path into the house with a box of pure rude, I entered and sat the box on the kitchen floor and boarded it off. The wife was ok with the kitchen as it was too big in proportion to the rest of the house, and no where else could give this pup privacy to get a grip on its behavior. The one thing I noticed while coming home, was the fact that the pup had enemies beyond us. Turned out that he had flees real bad, and they were kicking his butt. Somewhere between wanting to bite us and bite the flees, he was trying to find peace, and this may have been the reason he was stuck on momma. I told the family I was going in to the killer and wanted them to stand clear, and no matter what, don't call 911, I would be fine.
     There was a stand off in the kitchen, puppy and me shared opposite ends of it, his was the side of barking and growling, mine wonder and apprehension.  Mind you, I was the one who gave it chase, I was the one who took him from his life and mother, I was the one to have him boxed and carted, and now it's under attack both from around him and on him and he is furious. The one thing I had going for me, it was my house, and I could leave, whereas for him, he owned noting but them flees and they were a deadly bunch were he was concern. Then I notice the most strangest thing. The puppy was making advances toward me as if he did not care who could relieve him, but if he could find relief from his enemy by golly  he would sit in my lap if I could do something for him. Inch by inch, that puppy with growls and barks, some from frustration, some from terror, and some from being piss I did this to him, made his way closer and closer to me. I made it worst for the pup by being accommodating and kind which seemed to be the last straw that broke the camel's back as the puppy gave up and laid beside me as if to say, i surrender, just get them off of me.
     As a human being, we can use reasoning better then all of creation, so I told the flees this far and no further, besides, if my wife knew this dog had flees, we both would be outside. I immediately began to go to work on the flees, and no sooner then the puppy knew there was relief at my hand, his tongue became a flag and he waved it both on me and at me at the same time. Right there in my kitchen, I took care of flees and food, and before i knew it, the puppy was asleep as if for the first time in his whole life. I took down the sign that said poison arrow, and told the kids to come up with a name, got a bath and went to bed myself. It was my wife who brought it to my attention that the pup although he had a place of it's own, always made his way to the foot of my bed, and slept there as his way of taking no chances. He became my new killer with a smile to the whole family.
     It was a beautiful thing to hear his bark out in the yard, and find him in the home when the sun went down. One evening as the sun made it's way down toward it's westerly journey, time for worship came for the family, and the dog heard us in worship, and knew it was time. But we had already began to pray and he was still outside. Our worships are never long winded, but short and sweet and to the point of praise and reminding. The kids need reminding Who God is, and the Parents, need always give God the praise, for all things. After worship, there was an eerie silence, for darkness had begun to set in good, and there was no sign of our killer. One of the kids with tears in his eyes pointed to the road side, and there killer lay dead without notice. What I had feared for my kids was proven in bold terms as our faithful dog left a note in blood. A house close to the road is no place for kids, and watchfulness is required, notwithstanding worship of The Most High. We lost a faithful friend, but he left a message more darer then his short life ever had intentions of doing. The kids chose to play in the back of the house instead of the front from that time on, and although I missed that dog, I silently thanked God, for His providence...nj