OLDFIELD, MO — A dog (along with a band of cats) lives in my parents’ rural house down a rural county dead-end road just past mine. Thor is named after the “god of thunder”, but Thor is, well, scared of thunder.
He’s almost scared of me, though we are well acquainted. Thor lowers his head and tail towards everyone who doesn’t live with my parents, unsure and nervous.
Ironically, despite his irrational fears, Thor has no fear of objects that could actually kill or permanently disable him! Delivery trucks, big trucks with trailers, and school buses trigger his neurotic desire to run in front of them. No such trigger for regular cars and pickups, just larger, noisier vehicles. The trash truck, for example.
One exception is the jeep that delivers the mail. Though not exceptionally large, the white rural mail jeep uses flashing lights. The lights do it for Thor. He chases that jeep religiously, barking and barking.
Sometimes, he corners the jeep, bringing it to a standstill. The poor mail lady is held hostage. Thor considers this a tremendous victory. She tries honking. He backs up a few paces, but maintains his influence on her progress.
The mail lady loves dogs. She’s tenderhearted. She cares about the dog. But that’s her downfall. That’s why she actually injured Thor unintentionally.
One day, Thor darted from the woods beyond my parents’ mailbox and caught the mail jeep driver off guard. Before she knew it, the dumb dog was under her wheels.
The result was an injured dog, bloodied muzzle and nearly broken leg, and an apologetic, heavy hearted mail carrier.
Thor was inside for a week or two, recovering. A week or two later after his recovery, he was back to chasing dangerous vehicles. His injury didn’t stop his wrong thinking.
Dog’s erratic behavior reminds me of elections
Watching Thor race beside the school bus this morning reminded me of elections. Most candidates care too much about what their opponents and naysayers say. The opposition is like Thor, making noise and trying to stop them.
But like Thor, those naysayers quickly cower in the face of the truth. They are all bark and no bite. They might even get run over in the process of making a fuss. But, they’ll be right back at it, unaware of the danger.
You can’t be a candidate afraid of the opposition, stopping and hoping the barking dog in front of you will get out of the way.
You have to be like the school bus and the big trucks who blast through, not giving the dog time to stop them. The drivers who slow down for the dog can hurt the dog and stop progress. The drivers who blast on through keep the dog safer by not allowing the dog to get in the way.
That’s my advice for political office holders. Keep plowing on and don’t slow down for the naysayers. They’ll always be out there, making noise. Just keep on keeping on. Don’t stop or you might really hurt somebody.
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