Day 134

9/25/22

One might think that, with the addition of the cutest puppy in the world to our lives, our Gus might be a forgotten friend. Just the opposite...he has stepped up to the plate in making Sam's life amazing and weaseled his way further into our hearts.

Gus is the most gentle of brothers when it comes to our new little guy. I recently saw Sam grab onto his big brother's ear and hold on for dear life as Gus dragged the delighted puppy across the floor. I interceded to remove the piranha puppy from the pierced ear and Gus reacted by making sure his little brother was OK. After a few licks, a shake or two and a play bow, they were off to the races again!

Our little one is only 10 weeks old, but he takes up about 50% of our dog time. He is cuteness personified and we adore him. The others are watching our interactions and I soon realized I needed to spend more quality time with each of them.

To make sure we don't forget him, Gus tends to bring us things of worth. Now, he knows these items are not toys and some are even taboo for him, but he continues until I stop everything and give him the attention he needs. He starts small with pillows or socks. If that doesn't work, he moves on to breakable items or things that are valuable to us. One time, he even brought an entire bedspread to me! Aside from a little drool, the offerings are not damaged in any way. The look on his face, however, is enough to make my heart melt. "Pay attention to me! Play with me, Mommy!" That's all he wants.

When I was a teacher, I would have students who would play the "Gus Card." They would start out with a small infraction of the rules (which I might overlook) and, if that didn't grab my attention, things would escalate. I got pretty good at the balancing act of when to give attention and when to ignore. My entire philosophy in education was positive reinforcement.

Actually, my life's philosophy strongly includes this type of attention. With my own children, I would try to catch them doing something wonderful, praise them and hope that behavior would become ingrained within their very fiber. Even though there were certainly times when I had to deal with negative behavior and the consequences to follow, finding the positive in them worked most of the time. I always hated to reprimand my own children. By choosing positive reinforcement and kindness, their little hearts were filled and mine was not aching.

When my sister and I were young, our dear father would be called upon ("Wait until your father gets home!") to sort out our altercations. He would invite us into the living room for a chat. We would explain what had happened...often from varying viewpoints...and discuss options for next time. After that, he would ask us what our punishment should be. My sister ALWAYS chose a spanking...quickly over and life moved on..., but I was always trying to think of a way of reparation. She was older, bigger and bossier! I never won that battle. After a soft pat on the backside, we would move on with life knowing we were loved and accepted.

Actually, it is my firm belief that finding the good and honoring that part of an individual will work to bring out the positive in most people. Everyone likes to be acknowledged for trying to make good social choices. Long ago, I decided to look for the greatness in all two and four-legged hearts. Looking back over the reactions to positivity, it rarely disappoints!