The Dog Fight

This is a rather somber post, really. However, I cannot help but put it out there, because it weighs heavily on the mind these days. From the recent stirring up about diseases, politics, and things that make national headlines (and some local ones) creating an uproar around the globe, comes a blog post from yours truly...

I was just thinking about a phrase I saw on a social networking site the other day, and it made me ponder deeper (as usual) into the real life application of such a concept. The phrase, “I [have, or do not have] a dog in that fight” sent my mind into some humbling thoughts. Consider with me, if you will, the dog fight.

A dog, once born innocent and loving, is being raised and trained daily by a master to fight to the death. This dog, who could have easily been a happy creature, in a loving family, cowers under the commands of his master, heavy chains holding him to his post, both burdening him and strengthening him at the same time. Ears that have been cut short (in many cases butchered at home instead of done clinically by a vet) to avoid getting in the way of the dog’s own teeth as he sinks them into his opponent. This dog knows no other life than that of working, fighting, and recovering or dying. These dogs are pitted together in a fenced in area, and prodded toward one another by their masters until the fight begins. The crowd cheers for the dog they believe should win. Fights break out in the stands. Money is passed as bets are made. The noise is excruciating. And the fight begins…

One dog eats at another, and the other turns to defend itself, attacking in like manner. Blood falls to the dirt and sand under their feet, feet that are mangled by torture and pain. Muscles flexing and teeth baring, growling and snapping, the dogs continue as the crowd’s volume increases with each bite and shred. The crowd calls for more blood, so the masters of the dogs give the crowd their desire…until the dogs are either spent or dead on the ground. Money is then passed again as bets were won or lost in the fight.

Now, come with me to visit the dog’s family.

The little girl said goodbye to all her lovable puppies before they were even old enough to go away. She cried. She knew what was going to happen to them. They are litter mates, but they are being sold to people who are going to raise them to attack each other and fight to the death. The little girl is heartbroken. She’s not so little that she doesn’t understand what is going on, and it causes her great pain. She sees that these little loves of her life will never be lovable, but killers in the eyes of those who demand blood. She has seen the fights, clouded through tears that nearly blind her at every event. To close out the grim reality of the dogfight, the little girl hides under the bleachers and benches, squeezing her eyes tightly shut, and pressing the heels of her hands firmly against her ears to drown it out. In her mind she imagines her sweet puppies running in the field with her on the weekends when she is not in school. They play together, swimming in the creek or perhaps the pool, and chasing butterflies. Why?! Why do they have dogs in this fight?! Why are there dog fights at all??The little girl on the outside is all grown up inside. She understands the painful reality that, despite efforts to eliminate this suffering from the world, the true fighters will always find a way to stay. This is her life...

Food for thought

Becca

The Gift of Darkness

Have you heard the phrase, “The night is darkest before the dawn”? How about the theory that evil lurks in the shadows? My recent favorite is, “There is a light at the end of this tunnel!” There are so many sayings and ideas that surround the topic of darkness and night. Well, I get to share my own idea of the darkness.

Darkness is normal. It is reoccurring. Darkness comes and darkness goes. Like the rotating door of sunrise and sunset, darkness is inevitable. It is unavoidable. Have I depressed you yet? A bit of a fun revelation on my part now: I love darkness! The night is so sadly misunderstood…

When I drove the paper route for the Fresno Bee, here in the central valley in California, I encountered so many things in the darkness of the night, and pre-dawn hours! Some things were un-nerving, scary even (some animals out here are weird looking), and some were strange sights, like the drunk man walking in the middle of the streets, giving everyone who passed by a thumbs up and a “Hey! Drive safe!” Others, however, were beautiful things. Things that could never be experienced in the light of day! These amazing discoveries in the darkness were not few and far between either! They occurred often, and it was a joy to encounter and experience them all!

In the darkness of night we get the amazing opportunity to observe the diamonds of the sky: the stars. 

this image found on google.com

On many occasions we will even get to witness the amazing sight of one of these superior, glittering objects as it releases from its suspension somewhere in the air of space, soaring across the black canvas of the night sky…but only in the dark can this be seen with the naked eye.

The eclipse of the full moon that occurs somewhere between 11pm and 5am every now and then…the amazing and breath taking event that captures the attention of people around the globe, as the moon appears full one moment and, over time, gradually becomes a deep, dark shadow, only to begin shining full again, sliver by sliver. Pictures that are taken of this marvelous sight show the background of a night sky…

Some of the most beautiful things happen at night, in the darkness. I like to say that the darkness doesn’t hide these things, but it enhances them.

To me the dark brings with it a sense of calm. Rest. When I step outside in the evening, and witness the setting of the sun, I recall past years when I would begin to cry or become weighted down, carried lower and lower along with the level of the sun, and I dreaded the night. I feared it. Now…I embrace what the night brings to us, what it is intended to give us: that rest and calm. Just like the child who is tucked in bed by the parent every night… we are in need of a rest period. It is not the night when we fight and battle against all odds, in our situations that life brings. No, it is in the night that we rest and take a breather.

Take solace in the gift of the night, the peace in the darkness. Embrace the metaphorical “tucking in” that we are blessed with after an exhausting day of fighting and trudging through the trails of life. Step off to the side of the trail, unroll the blanket and stretch out under the sparkling diamonds of the sky and breathe deeply of the crisp air, letting it cleanse and refresh, and rest…rest knowing that the night can be a place NOT of fear, but of rejuvenation. It is the gift from Above, to prepare you for the next day’s work. <3

And now…I shall close my computer and look up at the stars that I am sitting under now, and breathe deeply the fresh evening air. Tomorrow will be a good day.