The Rescue Dog Affect…

Is worth their weight in gold.

Many, many school years ago I made a deal with my Son. If you make Honor Roll, you may adopt and rescue a dog. Well, he made it and we were off to the kennels within a 50 mile radious in Virginia, D.C. and Maryland. We continued to look high and low, near and   far. I was proud that my Son actually took the experience seriously, wanting to find the perfect fit.

One day we were visiting with family at American University in Washington, D.C. for a field hockey game. It was a beautiful fall day and we decided to have lunch in Georgetown after the game. Since there are several ways out of D.C. back to Maryland we were headed out on New York Avenue. It just so happens, on New York Avenue sits The Washington Humane Society, as we drove by we noticed they were still open and stopped in.

As we walked in, we got our normal “hi’s” and “hello’s”, signed in and proceeded to walk back to where the dogs were located. The ruckus began immediately when we opened the door, if you have ever been to a kennel, you know exactly what I am referring to. As we passed every single kennel, read every story we continued down the hall in anticipation. Was today we found our dog? And there sat Bentley, not barking, not getting up just sitting there looking at us with this expression on his canine face…What took you two so long? We had no idea about his breed[Giant Schnauzer], Jetty was his kennel name which had the first 4 letters of my last name[Majett] and he was super cool. This was our DOG!!!!

Jetty was his name, being a stay was his game. Jetty was found walking the streets of D.C., brought to The Washington Humane Society during the late rainy spring, adopted and then brought back to The Washington Humane Society again. Can you imagine our surprise that he was found, adopted and returned?! And now we wanted him immediately. However, the process would take a few weeks of a background check of us and WHS approval. In the background process they determined that the house we were living in belonged to my Mother, so we needed her permission. Yikes, I forget to mention this to my Mother because we were nervous she wouldn’t want us to have a dog in her big, beautiful house.  But as God would have it, she immediately gave us of her blessing.

Six years later, we are blessed beyond belief with our decision. I can’t thank my Mother enough for giving us permission, I am so grateful for the path we took that day because family was in town and I can’t thank God enough for these little blessings that end up being so major. We obviously changed Jetty’s name to Sir Bentley Schnauzer. Bentley has protected us far beyond words can imagine or describe. He is my fitness running buddy, my protector and friend .

God has created so many incredible blessings in animals. We must appreciate and care for the gifts He gives us. It’s a blessing to be given an animal to care for, love and nourish. However, owning an animal is not for everyone. Recognizing the fact that you shouldn’t or can’t own an animal is so important. To the person who let Bentley get away, along with the person who adopted Bentley and returned him gave us one of the biggest blessings of our lives-thank you. And most importantly, Thank you God!!!

 

 

Seventeen years ago…

I severely sprained my ankle just before Christmas 2000. It was awful for so many reasons, but I realized that I would not be able to work out on a sprained ankle. It was a little over a year when my Doctor gave me the thumbs up to start exercising again. Unfortunately, in the process of healing I gained 30 pounds from not exercising and poor food choices. I got on the treadmill as soon as I returned home from my Doctors appointment.

In 12 weeks of hard work, I lost all the weight I had gained, thankfully. Something happened while I was in the process of working out. I wondered in amazement how did I let myself gain the 30 pounds just because I had a sprained ankle? I told myself I would never let that happen again. Then I injured my calf twice in 2006 and recently got a contusion to the elbow. I am optimistic with all my injuries because of my original mistake. I was disappointed with myself back in 2000 when I sprained my ankle, I didn’t research alternative ways to stay healthful or exercise and I should have. I have learned to walk instead of run, to lift weights for my upper body, to swim and eat healthy. I will no longer settle for dead ends that don’t help me, I’ll continue to research a better way when I am faced with a challenge.

God feels that exact same way about us, He wants us to rely on Him for all of our worries and concerns. God speaks to us in so many didn’t forms, we just need to be still and listen. I know God is with me every step of the way, He is with you too.

Have you ever thought that you didn’t have a way out of something challenging? Don’t fret or worry, there’s always a better solution to a problem. Listen for God’s instruction.

I hope you have a great day!