You know that look you try not to show when someone makes such a stupid comment, or maybe they just need to be slapped back into reality. You want to do the honors of the reality slap but you reframe due to the kind person you are so you just walk away.

I do this when I hear people make comments about dogs not having a soul. OK, what defines a soul. After much research the three “definitions”(I use that term loosely as the soul comes from God and who knows the mind of God) that I thought describe it the best.

•  The spiritual immaterial of a human being or animal, regarded as immortal.(immortal meaning not dying but crossing over to God at death)
• The principal of life, feeling, thought and action from those attributes.
• my favorite – The part that consist of  mind, character, thought and feeling.

Our soul is what makes us as who we are. The ability to analyze a situation, act on it through our personality and character with compassion – compassion can be gentle or strong.

Think on all the things dogs do for us, not only in  their protective abilities. Think of your worse day and your dog comes to you to quietly sit by your side, sometimes with head in lap or pushed under your arm to let you know “I am here”. How about the occasional lick on the face to wash away the tears you shed. Dogs KNOW the feelings of people and are especially tuned into their masters. They laugh with us when we are happy by bouncing around. Picture this, you just get home from  work and are greeted with 100% tail wagging, circle turning unconditional love. How about if you trip and fall. You are immediately surrounded to assure all is well. And if you are hurt, they are by you side offering assistance.

Think of the times when this is all reversed, your dog is terrified of the vet or a thunderstorm. Now they are looking to you for love and support and when you give it, it strengthens the bond. Even when dogs are mistreated by their owners, they remain loyal. Dogs reflect God’s love for us. Always there, always protecting(even though we may not see it) and ALWAYS loving. Even when we don’t deserve it.

I saw a video on FB the other day of two dogs, one on the floor and one on the sofa. The one on the sofa had a cookie and as he bit into it, it broke in half. After eating the half in his mouth, with his nose, he pushed the other half over to the dog on the floor. Now I know not all dogs would do this but why would even 1. Because of inner being, soul.

Think of the times or dogs let us know of dangers heading our way. We understand that the dangers may not be real but still the dog sees something they feel is not right and they let us know. How many times has your dog look at you asking the question “Do you not see this?” Yes we do but we know how to handle the scary plastic bag moving up and down the street. We laugh but they are ever in protective mode – some more and some less – because of their love for us. And the more we love them, the more they love us. An ever evolving circle.

My whole point of this is to remind us of dogs and all animal having the gift of a soul. Everything that has breath is a creation of God and the soul is a gift given out of love for everything. All of it reflecting God’s love for all of creation.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton

Have you ever wondered about how marvelous the senses are that we have been given. Which of the 5 main senses that we have do you believe is the most important? I say 5 main senses as there are actually 21 senses but to me they all overlap with the 5 main ones we think of when we talk about our senses. The first four of these senses are generally created by parts of our head – eyes, ears, nose and mouth. The last one to me is all encompassing helping define how we use all gift of sense that we are given.

1. Sight – Coming from our eyes mostly but once an image has been seen it is locked in our memory sometimes for life, either good or bad. Sit quietly and think of the beautiful sunset you have seen with yellows moving to oranges, dimming to pinks before going to purples then grays. How marvelous is our God to show us such artistry. Think of the most beautiful ocean, mountain or river scene you have ever seen or a single delicate flower as it reaches to heaven. Then there are the heartbreaking sights when losing a loved one, a favorite pet or a catastrophe in our town, country even the world. The sense of sight is also tied to our heartstring for God to show us what beauty or heartbreak he sees. Then there are those unfortunate few who have lost their sight or tragically have never seen at all.  Try to explain the color blue to a person who has no reference to what color means.
2. Taste – Coming mostly from our tongue but taste can be shared in conjunction with our smell. Those chocolate chip cookies in the oven filling the entire house with it marvelous smell as they bake making your mouth water as you anticipate the taste. Or those hot peppers that flavor your food, make your eyes water, nose run and burn other parts as they leave your body. Try to describe a taste to someone who has never had the item you are describing. Remember back in childhood to the favorite foods that bring to mind love and family. The sense of taste is also tied to our heartstring as it creates fondness of flavors while creating memories, some good some bad. But what a wonderful gift this is from God in showing us another way to enjoy all of the things he has created for us.
3. Smell – Coming from the nose but closely tied in with the sense of taste. Even when it is a bad odor, you can sometimes taste it. Smell create memories, some good some bad.  For instance,  if you burn those cookies, the smell will influence not only the cookie but the smell will permeate the house and your memory. You now know what burned cookies smell like. As in above, the sense of smell is also tied to our heartstrings. Think of the different smells that effects our emotions, good or bad. The sweet smell of a Rose or Tea Olive in the spring, the smell of  a summer rain or the smell of a Christmas tree. Smell is another gift from God so that we may enjoy the beauty of his creation.
4. Hearing – Coming to our ears but also being able to feel the sound vibrations through the sense of touch. Hearing is one of those senses that strongly effects our moods. Loud noises make us jump, gentle sounds bring us peace and then there are sounds that make us want to dance. Think about hearing music – a true universal language in its own that takes us on many a journey depending on its melody. The sense of hearing is also tied to our heartstrings making us feel and remember the beauty of the moment or the fear the sound can evoke. Think of the wonderful melody of a simple hello from a friend and how sad for those with hearing loss who fight to enjoy every sound. Then there is sadness for those that have never heard at all. But hearing can be share in some aspects with touch by feeling the beat of the music and the with sight as light come on and off with sound. The gentle love of God’s whisper can also be felt through touch, as he always finds way to communicate to us. The sense of hearing is another gracious gift from God to help us enjoy a different aspects of his wonderful creation.
5. Touch – To me the sense of touch is the  most precious sense of all. While we think of the sense of touch as being physical touch, think of all the different ways we touch. You can touch with the hand, you can touch the heart with a gentle message. You can touch the soul with music or beautiful words from God. The sense of touch is tightly tied to our heartstrings. The sense of touch is also the one that is most abused by creating pain for others. The sense of touch effects how we share emotions – happiness, love, anger, pain and so on. In my opinion the sense of touch was given for us to share the love of God and it incorporates all the other senses. The senses of touch shows our God-likeness and how we use it reflects how we can share HIS love. Think on this the next time you hug a neck or in anger cause pain. The gift of touch is a gift to be shared in tenderness and love to reflect the master himself.

All of the senses are God’s gifts to man and beast to show all creation surrounding us how to share our inner most being. Whether we are human or from the animal kingdom, these gifts are a reflection of how God first intended Eden to be.   We must use them wisely so that we can correctly reflect the Love of God.