Читать книгу Paws to Reflect for Dog Lovers - Kim McLean - Страница 10

Though we stumble, we shall not fall headlong, for the LORD holds us by the hand.

—Psalm 37:24

Our dog Jack fell in love with Veronique the day we brought her home, and she adored him. A full-grown Pyrenees-collie can be as intimidating as a polar bear, with a bark that thunders across the valley, but he was gentle as a lamb with the new collie pup. She jumped and nipped and yapped at Jack playfully, and he would look up at us with a twinkle in his eye that seemed to say, “She’s pesky, but she sure is cute!”

Overnight, it seemed Veronique was tall enough to reach the latch on the front door. One day, we were all at home when a neighbor called to say he had our collie; she had been hit by a car. We didn’t even know she’d gotten out! He drove her to us, and we rushed her to the emergency vet. Her pelvic bone was broken, but it would mend without surgery.

Our neighbor felt bad. I felt bad. Jack felt bad. Our neighbor was a kind man who had seen Jack and Veronique running around, playing as though on a big adventure. They were having such a great time that he was going to let them play before he checked their collars for a number to call. Then a car rounded the bend just as Veronique shot out of the woods. Both neighbor and Jack froze with fright as they watched the inevitable collision.

Jack was beside himself for days, until at last he could see that Veronique was going to be all right. She could barely lift her head, but she managed to give Jack a lick on the nose so he wouldn’t worry. Jack seemed sorry for not taking better care of his girl, for leading her to a dangerous place. And I learned, too, to keep the door locked even though Veronique no longer tries to dash past the threshold before I’ve given the okay.

We make mistakes. And sometimes our mistakes hurt the ones we love. But we don’t have to keep making the same mistakes. God helps us when we stumble, and that’s how we grow in grace!—k.m.