“Love with genuine affection; delight in honoring each other." ~ Romans 12:10
Lynn watched in horror as the
wildfire advanced toward her sheep farm in Canada’s westernmost province. The
area had been tinder-dry for weeks; every fallen piece of wood bleached and
dehydrated - as flammable as kerosene. It
burned like a temper, as if the impatient flames had an intense anger toward all
living things.
The raging wildfire sent billows of black smoke high into
the sky framing a blood-sun. One could
only imagine the fear her animals must sense from the approaching peril.
Firefighters worked tirelessly. Tankers released a gooey flame retardant from
the sky in hopes of cooling the flames and slowing their progress. But after dark they stopped and last night
the whole ridge just west of her place combusted.
The blaze whipped and spread so fast; no time for
belongings. She scooped up her four
border collies, but had to leave behind a handful of cattle, the barn cat, 90
sheep and the two Maremma sheepdogs. Maremma’s
have been bred over centuries to do one thing and one thing only, guard livestock
from predators. Lynn trusted them to do
the honorable thing!
The two canines, Sophie (12) and Tad (6), had nearly 100
animals under their care, needing protection from coyotes, bears, and, of
course, wildfire. So, Lynn left a large bag of dog food and prayed for the best.
Lynn wasn’t able to return home for nearly 3 weeks (except
briefly to open the gates to let the sheep get water from the lake). It resembled a war zone – neighboring homes
had been totally destroyed, unfettered light illuminated scorched earth begging
for life, acrid fumes lingered despite a cleansing rain.
Despite all chaos and mayhem, there sat Tad and Sophie, the
sheep, cattle and even the cat. Tad had
a look that could’ve said “Where the heck have you been?”
Only one of the ewes had perished. The rest probably survived by remaining close
to the lake; close together in a pack lead by the two honorable canines. Everyone looked fine, a little dirty, hungry
and skittish, but never panicked.
In our relationships with one another, we are called to be unwaveringly
honorable – acting and living the values of respect, loyalty, selfless service,
integrity and personal courage in everything we do. Tad and Sophie did the honorable thing without
hesitation even when no one was around to witness it. Who said you can’t teach an old person new
dog tricks?
