So I finally took the first steps towards Ella and I becoming a therapy dog team. I have thought about doing this for a long time, but always had an excuse...none of them good. So what made me finally make a move? Oddly enough the Nashville flood. I spent the week down there after the flood helping Matt and Maggie with the clean up process. But I was not alone. People came out of the wood work to help in any way they could. It was inspiring to observe these people in action. They brought with them smiles and laughter, hugs and shoulders to cry on in the midst of disaster. They brought God's church out into the community where it was most needed. I observed all of this going on and it pulled on my heart (or maybe I should say God 'yanked' on my heart) I love to help people...my Spiritual gift is actually the gift of encouragement and the second is the gift of service. I have been neglecting to use the gifts God gave me. So it's no wonder this was such a powerful week for God to work a little more on my lazy heart.
So what is a therapy dog team?
A therapy dog is a dog trained to provide affection and comfort to people in hospitals, retirement homes, nursing homes, schools, with people with learning difficulties and stressful situations such as disaster areas.
Why would I want to do this?
I love dogs. Yeah, I know, most of you would say I am somewhat dog crazy! I love the way dogs can so easily make someone soften and smile. They greet you at the door, even if you were only gone for 5 minutes, with extreme and genuine happiness. They can make you forget that you had a bad day. They will stay by your side when you are sick. They make us all better people because they are "better people"
So I will keep you posted on our progress!
~bekuyps
"Dogs aren't our whole life, they make our lives whole"
http://www.deltasociety.org/Page.aspx?pid=183
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