It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged. I really want to get back to writing (I’m planning to write a book soon and blogging really helps me to process). There’s so much to blog about!
Recently we went on vacation to Dinkey Creek, CA. It is 60 miles outside of Fresno and 13 miles north of Shaver Lake. It was an impromptu trip. A friend had rented a chalet and invited us, well we kind of invited ourselves; however, she said yes. We loaded up the car and our two dogs and began the 5 hour drive from our home. We were so excited. I was excited for many reasons, one of them being that we were taking the dogs with us.
I owned both dogs prior to our marriage. They are both cute little dogs and I love them dearly. My husband was not a dog person when we got married. So when we got engaged the deal was that the dogs would no longer sleep in the bed with me so that when we were married they would already be used to sleeping elsewhere. It was a transition to say the least. We come from very different backgrounds. I grew up in a very rural area and the family dog was part just that… part of the family. My husband grew up in East LA. No dogs in his family.
After we were married the dogs did grow on my husband. He didn’t have the affection for them that I do, yet he did start to become attached. Especially to Peewee. So I did what any wife would do in my situation, I respected his wishes when it came to the dogs and I prayed. I prayed for his heart to soften and for him to love dogs. So us going on this trip with the dogs knowing that they would be sleeping in the same room with us was a big deal.
We were a couple of hours in to our drive when we stopped at a gas station so I could use the restroom. The first place we stopped was out of order, so we took the dogs from the car and walked across the street to the other convenience store. A homeless lady was walking behind us with a dog on a leash made from a belt. I left my husband with our two dogs outside and went in. When I came out there he was holding all three dogs. I asked him if he was watching her dog so she could also use the restroom and he said yes. Then he asked, “can we keep her. The lady can’t take care of her.” I looked at this dog (who is really a puppy) who had jumped up on my husband and had her head on his shoulder and said “of course” (how could I say no to that).
As it turns out the homeless lady’s name is Linda and we prayed with her. She only had the dog for three days. She found her behind a store and thinks she saw the mother dog dead by the railroad tracks. So we loaded up our new pup in the car and went on our way. My husband named her Laila (he thought she had boxer in her at first and named her after Muhammad Ali’s daughter). She’s actually a Pit/Lab mix but the name has stuck. She’s amazing.
She was wonderful to vacation with, loved the water and never messed inside once. We’ve had her for over two weeks now and she’s been a joy. The bigger joy for me is to see the answered prayer in action. My husband loves her. Really loves her. He takes her to the dog park, plays with her and has bonded with her. He also has bonded more with the other two dogs. I never imagined I would see him like this. It’s brought us closer together.
God’s timing is beautiful. It convicted me on the difference between praying (and surrendering it to God) and nagging or trying to be in control. This is much better!
