An Ode to a Canine Companion

My Friend recently visited a college classmate. The classmate’s dog died a few months earlier. There was a “marker” in the midst of the patio flower bed which read: “Sam’s Memorial Garden”. Below the marker was a placard with the message: “May the Joy & Happiness that Sam gave to “Many”, be shared, one to another, so that Sam’s Kindness & Love is his legacy to Humanity.”

That poignant placard was a vibrant paradox of a dog’s devotion to his companion, as opposed to man’s inhumanity to man. (My friend’s classmate purposely avoided using the term “Sam’s Owner”, because the relationship between a man and his dog is not that of a “Master to a slave”. The relationship between dog & man is best described as unconditional love. It doesn’t matter what the man does or did, his dog will lie down beside him with concern and devotion.

That’s the Gospel message: “Love one another, as Christ has loved you.” (with the unconditional love of the Redemptive Cross.)

Sadly, many men return offense with vengeance, rather than turn the other cheek. For example, “Road Rage” has morphed from a honing horn, to “The Finger”, to a gun. Perhaps, the world would be a better place if we lived accordingly to the message in Sam’s Memorial Garden’:

“May the Joy & Happiness that Sam gave to “Many”,

Be shared, one to another, so that Sam’s Kindness & Love,

Is His legacy to Humanity.”

God help us all, if Sam’s message died with him.

My friend’s “Words to Live By” were given to his daughter &^sons

at their graduations from H. S. & College:

 

“The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion

to their commitment to excellence,

regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.”                                                 Vince Lombardi

 

“If you meet with Triumph and Disaster,

treat those two imposters just the same.”                                                         Rudyard Kipling

 

“It’s the man in the arena, muddied and bloodied,

whether he has won or lost, who is honored,

and not the cold timid soul on the sideline,

who has tasted neither victory, nor defeat.”                                                     Teddy Roosevelt

 

“Always do more than is required of you.”                                                        George Patton

“Love one another as I have loved you.”                                                            Jesus Christ

 

“Learn to write your hurts in sand, and kindness to you, in stone.”            Your Dad

“Forgiveness is the fragrance

the violet sheds on the boot that crushed it.”                                                    Mark Twain

 

“You are fearfully and wonderfully made

in the Image and Likeness of God.”                                                                    Genesis/Bible

 

“We are spiritual beings expressed through humanity.                                  Malone

“You don’t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.”                             C. S. Lewis

“The Christian soul experiences peace & joy

that the secular mind can’t imagine.”                                                                Your Dad

“It’s not about you.

Focusing on ourselves will never reveal our life’s purpose.

We were made by God and for God.

Until we understand that, life will never make sense.”                                  Rick Warren

 

Asking, “What’s in it for me?” –

is a selfishness that calcifies the heart,                                                              Your Dad

is “A life full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”                                      Shakespeare

 

“Grant me neither poverty nor riches.

Lest I be full, and deny my God.

Lest I be desperate,

and by stealing defile the name of my Lord.

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”                                                     Psalms/Bible

 

“We make a living by what we get.

We make a life by what we give.”                                                                         Winston Churchill

 

“The tragedy of life is what dies inside a man while he lives.”                       Albert Schweitzer

“Esse quam videri: To be, rather than to appear.”                                             Anonymous

“Don’t forsake the good, in search of the perfect.”                                             Your Dad

 

“We want power over experiences,

and control over outcomes.

We need to trade the control we crave,

for the companionship of God.”                                                                             John Eldridge

 

“Everyone eventually surrenders to something or to someone.

If not to God,

you will surrender to money, to approval, to pride, to lust, or to fear.

Surrendering your life to God requires:

gratitude, humility, obedience and trust.”                                                          Rick Warren

 

“God wants men concerned about what they do.”

“Satan wants men concerned about what happens to them.”                          C. S. Lewis

 

Success:         “To laugh often, and much.

To earn the respect of intelligent people,

and the affection of children.

To know that even one life breathed easier,

because you have lived.”                                                                  Emerson

 

Success:        “To fulfill your calling, not to satisfy your ambition.                   Patrick Morley