Compassion

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion, If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
The Dalai Lama

My family had an addition to the family on December 31 in the form of an adopted Greyhound named Willow. She is a beautiful animal with the kinds of lines only Mother Nature could have created. Sleek, graceful, and focused...a truly unbelievable animal. The first night was a real challenge. Willow had been with a family for over a year when because of divorce, she was turned back into the Grayhound kennel.

I like dogs, and I wanted Willow to be a great part of the family...but then some things began to go a bit wrong. She was not accustomed to the new wood floors we just invested heavily into and found herself slipping and sliding, trying to find good footing. As a result, she gouged the floors pretty badly...with every step was a new deep groove in our perfect floors. Willow also obviously had not been around stairs for some time and the numerous staircases, one made of the same slippery hardwood mentioned before. Additionally, she seemed intensely annoyed by our 2 cats, and was very jumpy. Given that it was new years eve, many people in houses around us were lighting fireworks in celebration...each bang bang pow resulting in a panicked pooch. In one case in her nervousness she dug into my forearm as she was trying to find footing...the scratch is still prominent as I type.

I went to bed defeated -- feeling sure that the new dog was not going to make it in our home and that we would need to return her. I felt I needed to find the right balance and limit for my family and property. I fell asleep knowing we would try another day, but quite honestly felt that we were dog failures.

When I woke up this morning, I set out to honor my commitment to live one of the 25 virtues each day this year. Today was compassion, which was completely needed. I retooled my thinking. I watched Willow early in the day and tried hard to understand the situation from her perspective. I noticed that the more I led her firmly but gently, the more she responded. I recognized also that she likes to rest frequently and that we really had not given her the sleep she needed the day prior.

As a family, we laid out blankets and towels so that she could have pathways throughout the house, making exploring and safety easier to come by. We also worked with her repeatedly to get used of the stairwells in our house. Finally, instead of leading her around the backyard to go to the bathroom, I gave her freedom (we have a completely 6ft enclosed and safe back yard).

The more I really tried to be compassionate to Willow's needs, the more I felt my resentment and defeatist attitude fading. I began to grow hopeful, and I found that my actions and instincts were stronger, more confident, and more successful. My wife actually commented late in the day that she noticed that my entire attitude about Willow had changed, and now she felt hopeful that everything was going to work out.

I like to think of myself as a compassionate soul, but in this time of discomfort and stress, I found that I had lost sight of my compassion. By focusing upon it, I was able to turn a very disparaging and negative perspective into one of understanding and patience.

Tomorrow's Virtue...Courage.