This is Harry. He, like nearly all dogs I meet has won over my heart. We only met at the beginning of 2020 but have become good friends and are particular fans of walking and running together-he’s not fussy about which! He’s very clever, understanding far more spoken words than I expected, so much so that his owners and I often try and come up with alternative words for things that cause excitement such as a walk, but he now therefore knows not only walk, but adventure, journey, perambulation all to mean the same thing. He works out who on any given day seems to be the most likely to give in when he asks for extra food and snacks, with frequent success.
I remember watching Wallace and Gromit with mum when I was younger, and she would often remark on the detailed expressions on Gromit’s face, making it so clear to those watching exactly what he was thinking. Harry, as I’m sure is the case with many dogs, is just the same. He tells us so much with just his eyes, particularly when asked “what do you want?”, the changes in his expression or behaviour clearly show if he wants food, to play, a walk or a cuddle. It’s always the look on his face that makes me cave in when he’s trying to ask for more snacks, far more than the wag of the tail does. It’s amazing to see quite how much shared understanding there can be even when only one party in the relationship can talk.
I realised very quickly when we started wearing masks last summer that I couldn’t use as many facial expressions to convey meaning. I couldn’t very easily smile at strangers as I passed them in the co-op, or so visibly show my patience as I was waiting for someone ahead of me. Suddenly, if I wanted to express these things to others around me, I had to do so verbally, although I also at times found myself smiling behind my mask which nobody could see. There are, of course, benefits to having to revert to using more verbal cues, mostly that they don’t get misinterpreted, making intentions far clearer to convey.
Harry knows instinctively when someone is unwell or upset, arguably at times before they themselves do. When I was staying with him recently, I received some news that took some time to process. He happened to be upstairs at the time but before I had said anything, he’d come downstairs and curled up on the sofa next to me, where he stayed until I felt a little better. He shares our joy too, clearly knowing when we’re happy and laughing-although he does try to join in if any kind of game becomes a bit too enthusiastic and thinks that we’re fighting if we give each other a hug, which he then tries to stop or fix!
God knows before we do when we’re about to face challenges or emotional situations, and is always there and ready for us, just like with Harry coming to lie next to me, all we have to do is reach out to feel his comfort. There are times when we might be overflowing with words to pray, but I certainly find that there can also be the complete opposite, where it’s difficult to find any words at all to describe what we want to in prayer. Sometimes, the prayers that leave me feeling the most comforted are the simplest ones, wordlessly lifting up a situation to God in prayer.
We are so often reminded through the teachings of Jesus and the Bible to seek God’s help always, not only through trying times, but through happy, easy times too. Proverbs 18:10 reminds us: “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and are safe”. We don’t need a reason to seek God, he’s there to comfort and guide us whenever we call upon him. The more we lean on him and not our own ideas, the sturdier our support is.
A prayer
Lord God, thank you for always being ready to comfort us through difficult situations. Help us to remember to lift up all our situations to you, even when we don’t really know how to pray about them. Amen.