| A Word Edgewise by Mary Joe Clendenin |
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| A Word Edgewise by Mary Joe Clendenin |
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Last Updated 01/20/06
For more literature go
to Clendenin Books
Email: mjclen@our-town.com
LIFE WITH JEDDIE, OR A DOG’S BEST FRIENDS
When we fell heirs to this puppy--puppy then, dog now--our son said, "Good. He’ll add a new dimension to your lives--or dementia." True, Jeddie has done both. At first, it was mostly dementia as he chewed up everything left within reach-- and reach exceeded normal expectations as he was soon adept at jumping on everything in our house. The list of chewable would be long, including a belt belonging to our daughter when she visited Thanksgiving, various shoes, towels, rags, toys. He completely chewed and digested an old sandal that I surrendered to his little black pleading eyes. The corner of one sweater looks like it was used to clean a grain thresher. Oh, well, we did learn to shut closet doors and pick things up off the floor.
I’ve found it’s a real comfort to have a dog to talk to, makes it less embarrassing when you talk to yourself, and maybe it’s a bit more intelligent. I know it’s less irritating to talk to a dog that doesn’t answer than it is to talk to a husband who hears nothing but a referee’s whistle during football season. For years some of my best, priceless bits of information and pleading exhortations have fallen on deaf ears, as I have sought to communicate with the football fan with whom I share abode.
On the other hand, I can talk to Jeddie all I please and he continues to sit at my feet and look at me with imploring eyes that seem to say he enjoys my every word. I can even tell him what a dirty dog he is, as long as the tone of voice is pleasing, and he is not in the least offended. He’s just thankful to be a friend of the human race (I almost said member), without bothering to examine the conditions.
I’m convinced that the dog understands as well as most listeners. All of us tend to hear with honest comprehension just what we want to hear. Jeddie hears and understands "no" as well as anyone. He just doesn’t choose to agree with the caution. One exception--he seems to appreciate the admonition when he has just gotten over excited and barked at a dog that weighs about ten times as much as he does--and is happy that I’m holding the leash firmly. He really doesn’t want to injure his canine friends.
This dog is good for my health, too. Every morning, as soon as I’ve set the coffee to brewing, he pleads with me to get his leash and go for a walk. Cold mornings he eagerly dances around as I put on hat, coat and gloves and reach for his leash. Then he stands on his hind legs for me to fasten it and heads for the door. We leave the drive in double time, much faster than I would stroll on my own. He is impatient. After all. Some of those posts in the park might actually get dry if we don’t hurry.
Jeddie is a dedicated sniffer. He must sniff at each post in the park, even when he has gotten to the point when all he can do about the situation is to make a dry wave. He pulls with great tenacity to an interesting tree, and then I have to pull with the same measure to get him to skip a few. But we get our early morning outing even when the temperature reading is below freezing. A couple of mornings I’ve reneged, much to his puzzlement. After all, he came equipped with very soft long fuzzy hair that keeps him warm--and also acts as a vacuum to attract all the dirt and burrs within ten feet. Sometimes his feet are so dirty after sopping up the dew and then the dirt that I hold them under the faucet before turning him loose in the house.
Friends from the biped clan are welcome, but on first sniff, treated with a little mistrust. The second time around he remembers and wants to be greeted with open arms, making it necessary that he be restrained and often abolished to his back yard domain.
He shares his domain with squirrels and birds. This other wildlife doesn’t seem to bother him, nor he them. On a few occasions I’ve seen him run a squirrel up a tree, but he soon realizes his mistake finds another outlet for his energy.
One favorite game is to retrieve a Frisbee. He wrestles with it, trying to find a way to carry it to me, and then doesn’t want to give it up. I’m sure he’s thinking of my own good health and making me hurry a little to get it from him. Either that, or he’s trying to teach me something about the game played by his rules.
Yes, he’s added dimensions to our lives. We’ve had many laughs and many sleeping emotions have been stirred as we watched, petted, and played with the mutt. He seems to understand when the person in his attention is a small child that requires gentleness, and he is patient with the infirmities of seniors. He makes allowances for us when we don’t learn quickly enough, or seem to ignore some of his wants. As long as we share a cookie now and then, give him plenty of petting and talking to, provide a safe place for him to live, he bestows unqualified love upon his family. We feel very fortunate to be his best friends.