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Pollyanna Reports, IX
Never give up on America as long as we have citizens like these.
This is one of the most heartwarming and touching things I have seen in a while, as we are immersed in qualities that are the polar opposite of those descriptions. This is reported to be a store — looks like a pet supply store — which gives homeless dogs a warm place to sleep at night. I do not know who they are or where they are, but I would like them to know that all who see this would say to them: God Bless you for what you are doing for these poor animals. God Bless You!
And God Bless America!
Published in General
What a heart-warming story! Thanks for that, Jim.
Hey, I’m like that too! Remember the Barn Swallows? :-)
https://ricochet.com/1274593/the-eggs-that-will-never-hatch/
And all the cats, of course.
Pollyanna is right.
The country’s going to hell in a handbasket, but someone’s being nice to a mangy mutt. So all is well, apparently.
I am finding it increasingly troubling that people seem to prioritize animals over people. Especially dogs. In many ways, dogs are easier to deal with than people, though they can’t clean up their own messes.
That’s all true, but they do help people. And that’s a good thing because life is hard for everyone. Even with rock solid faith it can be tough to sort out.
I believe that most good people can find it in their heart to be kind to both mangy animals and mangy people especially during times of turmoil.
Please let me know what you had for breakfast as I want to stay as far away from it as possible.
@arizonapatriot
Here is a photo of some of the reasons the photo in the post struck such a chord with me- My Lady, our two beautiful Granddaughters and our Boston Terrier puppy, Winston, who I could never, never, never call a “mangy mutt.” And, yes, now that you mention it, “all is well” here, at least for the nonce.
Oh, shame on the mothers of mortals
Who have not stopped to teach
Of the sorrow that lies in death-dumb eyes
The sorrow that has no speech !
The same force formed the sparrow
That fashioned man, the king.
And the God of the whole gave a spark of soul
To each furred and feathered thing.
From the Song of the Band of Mercy, Ella Wilcox Wheeler
Beautiful! Thank you!
Looks like pagan nonsense, to me. I don’t think that there’s even a hint of a teaching in Scripture that animals have souls. To the contrary, the teaching is that humans, and only humans, are made in the image of God.
The necessary corollary to treating dogs like people is that you’re treating people like dogs. I worry about this.
Dogs are cute, and can be good for kids, I think. They can teach kids to take care of something, as a sort of training to be a parent, with low cost for failure, because if the dog dies, it’s not that big a deal. It can feel like a big deal to a kid, and that can be a useful lesson too, in facing the reality of death.
I’ve had dogs most of my life, and generally like them. I don’t even mind the sappy sentimentality, I guess. My younger daughter’s adorable puppy, Kiora, entertained us greatly last night, running around excitedly in an (unbelievably rare) snowfall here in Tucson.
But our country is in an unbelievable mess. You want me to feel good about it, and show me a picture of some dogs being cared for. There are people who are homeless, millions of kids without fathers, a couple thousand unborn babies being killed every day, perverts running rampant after having taken over our schools, an epidemic of deaths from substance abuse, and on and on.
And, worst of all, my guess is that the vast majority of our countrymen are happily headed to Hell. Literally, Hell.
And I’m supposed to feel good about this country because someone is taking care of a few dogs?
I would suggest that for your own piece of mind that dwelling on some things that aren’t terrible wouldn’t be a bad thing. Because, frankly, everything isn’t horrible. There is still beauty, caring, and goodness if you are interested in looking for it.
Thank you for this message which we all need to be reminded of every minute of every hour of every day and especially in times like these when it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the most vile, wretched, mean, evil news about some of the same kind of people — basically, all of this is why I started doing The Pollyanna Reports because, as you say, there is so much goodness in this great Nation of ours and it is so gratifying to publish that Good News when you find it. Thanks again for this great reminder; much appreciated.
PS: I so remember that great old song – the version I remember was by Johnny Mercer.. I am now almost certain to have that song as an earworm for a while!
@gossamercat, although one member thought your poem was “pagan nonsense”, which is, in my opinion, nonsense in itself, when I read the entire poem, I felt it should be shared as it is so beautiful and so perfectly captured the emotions (there goes those “feelings” again) I experienced when I saw what this store owner had done for “our tortured kin”. Here it is:
I cannot fathom the mindset it must take to call beauty like these words “pagan”; I hope it is enjoyed by all as much as I loved it, and the qualities it expressed. Thanks again.
Thanks Jim. I had memorized the verses that I shared because I too thought they encapsulated something beautiful and true, just like the photo you shared. And I just can’t believe that God doesn’t smile down on us when we appreciate and care for His creatures.
Speaking of “Ignore” buttons…
Jim, remember that old phrase coming out of WWII, describing a perfect bombing mission? It describes what you just did with that comment:
Right down the smokestack!
Brilliant!