I have a little sister. Well, kind of. I'm actually an only child, but a few years after moving out of my parent's house, they decided to adopt another kid--a Shih-Tzu puppy named Sassy. Sassy is a fun addition to our family. Sassy has a great life. She sleeps a lot, she will never know what hunger feels like, and she has an endless supply of toys to play with.
Even though a puppy's life is much different than our lives as adults, but I do think there's a lot we can learn from them.
Three Life Lessons From Sassy
1. Sometimes stuff happens. Sassy doesn't like being picked up. Sometimes she'll try to run away from you, sometimes she'll crawl under the couch, and sometimes she'll try to bite you. Unfortunately for Sassy, she's pretty easy to corner and pick up. When she realizes that she's been beat and that being picked up is inevitable, she looks up at you with a resigned look on her face and braces herself to be picked up.
Sassy puts in a lot of effort to avoid being picked up, but when she knows her fight is over, she quickly goes into damage-control mode and makes the best of her situation.
2. Value people. When Sassy meets you for the first time, you're immediately her new best friend. She jumps up on you, she licks you, and she will even jump up onto your lap. Every time Sassy sees me, she is obviously is happy to see me (even though I pick her up sometimes).
Everyday we encounter new people and get back into contact with people we've met before. Some of these people have tried to "pick us up" before. It is important to make people feel valued, important, and to not go out of your way to avoid people who have hurt you before. Note, you still have to protect yourself--don't give dangerous people a chance to hurt you.
3. Play hard. Sassy has a whole box of toys, and by the end of the day, those toys are all over the floor. Tug of war is Sassy's favorite game and she'll give it everything she has--if I wasn't 20 times her size, I bet she'd win. When she's outside, she runs all over the backyard and makes sure that there's no detail that she's missed.
It's really important to work hard at your job, to serve your church and others, and to make sure important things in your life are prioritized; however, it is also important to work to enjoy life. Find a hobby, interact with people, read a great book, watch something on TV, play sports, or any other activity that helps you enjoy life. Activities like this reduce stress, improve your health, and make your life more enjoyable.
What's Your Pet Got To Add?
Does your pet share any great life lessons with you? What are they?
Are you a cat person? I'd be willing to check out a guest post about what we can learn from cats.
