Day 1051

Our two youngest pups often get into a friendly skirmish. They snarl and gnaw on each other… all in the name of brotherly love!!! They always end up as best friends when it’s over.

When humans get deeply into a discussion with a chance for disagreement, it would seem that the “listening ears” shut down in order to make room for the brain to come up with the next “discussion point.” In most cases, both parties have given up on listening/understanding to focus on proving that point.

Pursuing a discussion with this goal in mind never seems to end well. First, both parties feel their frustration building and neither one opens their minds to hear the opposing view. Instead of adding fuel to the fire, perhaps a simple “Tell me why you feel that way” would be an illuminating choice.

Gus and Sam are usually “discussing” the ownership of a bone or toy. Even though they both want to ‘dig their teeth’ into the argument and win the prize, they eventually let it go and move on with their day. We can learn a lot from dogs.

I, for one, am going to make an effort to listen more and defend my stance less. By listening, instead of preparing the next point in my defense, I might just gain a bit of wisdom and feel less angst. The Goldens would approve!