The Border Collie Chronicles Observations from (arguably) the World's Smartest Dogs; (but, without question, the bestest friends!) or, Life As We Understand It, as told from dad's shop. |
|
Posted July 1, 2015 |
|
Umbrellas
A Guest Article
By Maggie
Anyone from Texas should surely have seen that our grand State has seen
its share of rain this spring. Depending on which part of
good ole Texas you’re in, you’ve either gotten your fill or Tropical
Storm Bill dumped 12 inches on you.
Well … all of this rain has gotten me thinking on how to stay protected. Remember,
I don’t really like the rain and all that thunder. Are
you sensing a common theme in all of my thoughts? Dad says
it’s astraphobia, but I have no clue what he’s talking about. He’s
tried to explain that it is a common thing and even my BC kin suffer
from it. I really don’t know about that!
Back to my protection from the rain … I was telling Dad that I’ve found
the only spot in the garage that I can hide from the rain. I
can fit my head under a cabinet that Dad has in the garage and nobody
can see me. Mommy says she can still see my big butt
sticking out, but I’m convinced that if I can’t see the rain, it can’t
see me; and that goes for the thunder too.
I guess my philosophical discussion on the rain made Dad think a little
too. And if you’re following “our” story, you know that
Dad went through a big change recently. He’s tickled to
death following that arrow. I mention this because it
seems that all of our talks lately have been a lot more stimulating. I
think he’s so much more relaxed that he actually comes home in a good
mood. Well, he did it again. He was able to
parallel a talk about the rain to the big change.
For Mommy and him, their protection from the rain is an umbrella. Dad
explains that umbrellas have several uses: they protect
you from the rain in bad weather and they protect you from the sun and
its harmful rays. Maybe Dad remembers the “chicken-fry” in
the Bahamas! Either way, he begins preaching that when
you’re under the umbrella, you have protection and it’s easy to get
comfortable with the protection that it provides.
His correlation of the protection and our comfort seemed to make a quick
detour to how being comfortable knowing you’re under the umbrella can
actually prevent you from stepping from underneath its protection for
fear of what could happen. After all, we might get soaking
wet or we might get a sunburn (possibly a 2nd degree
burn … ). I think he was trying to make the point that if
you never venture out from under the umbrella, you may never know the
joy of dancing in the rain or the mental and emotional benefits to the
sun’s warming rays.
After constipating[i] on
it for a day or two, I think I get it. Dad had been under
the umbrella for so long, that he began to fear that he could not be
successful without the protection that came with it. After
all, it provided the safety, security and stability that he had become
so used to for all of those years. I know that Dad finally
followed his arrow and I think in doing so he’s found that “Rain
is a Good Thing”[ii] and
that it’s perfectly normal to step out and enjoy the “Sunshine
& Whiskey”[iii]. Happy Whiskey Wednesday folks. And don’t let your “umbrella” shade your vision of the world!
Editor's Note: Well
said Ms. Maggie!! You took the words right out of our
mouths!!! As soon as we read the title to this story last
Thursday evening, we immediately imagined the directionS that
you were taking with your article!!! Our dad too, stepped
out from under the “protection” of the umbrella – and all of us think
that was his bestest decision ever!!! We have no doubt
that your dad’s decision will prove to be a great move as well!!!
It’s not always easy to peek out from under the comfort (or perceived
comfort) of your umbrella (or to pull your head out from under that
cabinet in the garage, or to come out from under the drinking table in
the shop), and sometimes it is scary as heck … but as John
Wayne says:
Courage is being scared to death - but saddling up anyway.
And some others have some wise words to share on this topic as well!!!
We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of
life, when all that we need to make us happy is something to be
enthusiastic about.
Charles Kingsley
Minds, like bodies, will often fall into a pimpled, ill-conditioned
state from mere excess of comfort.
Charles Dickens
Yes is how you
get your first job, and your next job, and your spouse, and even your
kids. Even if it's a bit edgy, a bit out of your comfort
zone, saying yes means that you will do something new, meet someone new
and make a difference.
Eric Schmidt
The scholar who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed
a scholar.
Confucius
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.
Franklin D. Roosevelt and lastly, one that we find REALLY fitting ...
I recall
the story that a frog if put in cold water will not bestir itself if
that water is heated up slowly and gradually and will in the end let
itself be boiled alive, too comfortable with continuity to realize that
continuous change at some point may become intolerable and demand a
change in behavior.
Charles Handy
Here’s to a safe and happy fourth to all (remember … no pyrotechnics
permitted on our place!!)
Best wishes to
all!!!!
[i] See
Bubba’s article on Constipation if
you need more splainin’.
[ii] Rain
is a Good Thing. Song by Luke Bryan on the album
“Doin’ My Thing” – 2009. [iii] Sunshine & Whiskey. Song by Frankie Ballard on the album “Sunshine & Whiskey” – 2014. |
|
Back to ARTICLES Page | |
|