Hero, The Wonder Dog, never ceases to amaze me. I recently looked out in the back yard and noticed he was in his guarding stance. He is quite ferocious about protecting the castle---IN THE FENCED BACK YARD! Especially brave when enclosed behind the protection of a six foot fence, no bird or lizard dares to invade when Hero is on duty.
He also likes to sit and stare out the front window (the warm sunshine in the air conditioned house might be a slight incentive). He faithfully barks, growls and spits at every canine who dares to walk down the street in front of his house.
The three a day walks continue---I trained him so well in Fort Worth to relieve himself when out for a leashed walk that he refuses to use the back yard. As long as I am behind him with the leash pulled tight, he boldly goes for every dog or cat in sight. Hero does not realize he is a dog and considers all four legged creatures enemy invaders on his turf. He is quite brave in the confines of his home or with me standing behind him. What would happen----if he were to escape from the protection of home and master? Would he survive in the big bad world?
We all have similar tendencies to be brave and outspoken within familiar territory. As long as we are certain the fences surround us and others have our back, we are quick to growl, bark and spit. Social media is a great example of the fences we place hide behind. As long as we are on this side of the keyboard, we let it fly without regard for our safety and protection and hold those who disagree in great disdain. The WWW encourages loose tongues and indiscriminate courage. We often jump quickly and without thought when we feel our territory has been invaded by someone we disagree with. With the protection of being behind the screen of our computers, we feel the false sense of safety and lose any inhibitions. We bravely stand up for our beliefs--and often say far more than we EVER would if we were face to face with those who intrude upon our values. Good or bad--social media has released the inner guard dog in many of us. We have lost the tolerance to even listen to another philosophy. What have we unleashed with social media?
And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,
Hebrews 10:24
There's the humourous and the serious side to today's Blog.
ReplyDeleteThe Humourous side: I too learn lessons from my dog. He is selectively deaf. Whenever I point and say "Go to bed" he looks at my finger as if to say "Who is Fred?" I have often used this selective deafness when I don't want to hear something. He is courageous. Whenever he sees a cat in our garden he looks at me and then hides in his bed. Again, a quality I have often admired in others. Cowardice and running away leaves you to fight, or run away, another day. He only responds to food. Give him anything and he will eat it. A sentiment after my own heart. If it is not edible then it's not worth having. That's what I said when my wife bought me a new tie for my birthday!!!
Now the serious bit: It seems to me that in these days of computers and social media everyone wants to be a celebrity and write something about themselves - including me. Why do they, (I) do it?
I have seen on social media things written by family and friends that they would not have dared say to me in person. Things like - "I have had a terrible night last night. The baby was up crying all night!" And my reaction is: "So what? Are you the first person to have been kept up by a baby? What about all those mothers before social media existed? Do you need to tell the whole world about your petty problem?" Or another tweet: "I am having a painful period right now. That time of month!" Is it really necessary for that person to tell one and all about this? Or - even worse - "My husband is in re-habilitation once again about his drug and drinks problem!" Did the idiot who wrote this consider the effect on her husband. Did she not think about his employers, friends and family reading this?
So there you have it. Idiots should not be on social media. My dog told me so.
God bless.
Your wit has driven home your well made point! Perhaps we should insist upon a competence test before allowing anyone on the WWW. THAT would create another useless bureaucractic boondoggle!
DeleteBlessings, My Friend!