I Need Them, Even When I Say I Don’t
By Rev. Dr. Joshua Lawrence
He won’t take no for an answer. He insists. And just when you think you’ve managed to subdue his neediness for a bit, one word produced at a relatively high pitch—it all starts over. And that’s okay. Mostly. After all, I do love dogs. I just can’t seem to find a healthy way to establish boundaries. With my dogs, my kids, and countless others.
Dogs are good that way. They jump and bark. They tear things up that we would rather have remained whole. They express their excitement about our presence in myriad ways. Honest and obnoxious. And if we have any hope of getting things done—cleaning, writing, cooking—then we had better find a way to constrain them just a bit. To temper their enthusiasm enough for us to be at least somewhat productive.
But what about those moments when it is better for us to be unproductive? When reality itself attempts to pause our procedural living. Herein lies the wisdom of canines. No matter how much we resist their cuteness, their charm, they will remain at the ready for that special moment when we appear able to receive them. As they want to be received. Needy and excited, full of all that love that they have had to hold onto for too long! Reminds me of an old Cat Stevens’ song, “Can’t Keep It In,” that begins as follows:
Oh, I can’t keep it in, I can’t keep it in/I’ve gotta let it out, I’ve gotta show the world/The world’s gotta see, see all the love, love that’s in me….
Presently, I live with two dogs. I don’t have them. I don’t own them. I share space and life with them. Which means that we must work together so they can let out all that love and I can still get things done here and there. And, of course, so that I can still receive that love when I’ve been made horizontal by a long day. I’m not sure what my life would be like without dogs. I’ve lived at different times without them. And I don’t think I was necessary devoid of the existential basics. But as “fine” as I was on my own, it is still difficult to imagine my life without my furry friends. Under my desk, under my feet, looking at me with more anticipation than any other being in the world. So, here’s to our friends that we can never appreciate enough. And who still love us, despite our occasional resistance to their exuberant love.