FACING YOUR FEARS
I can't believe he's making me do this. I've told him a hundred, no… a thousand times. I'm not afraid! But does he listen? Of course not.
He lays a hand on my shoulder and says, "Just relax. We'll start with small steps and work our way up from there. Before you know it, you'll handle it like a pro!"
I grumble and complain and he laughs at me. Huh. Some friend he turned out to be. Laugh at my discomfort why don'tcha? Forcing me to 'face my fears'... sheesh. Sitting down on the park bench I fold my arms across my chest. Nope. I'm not moving. He tries to pull me up but I've wrapped my arm around the armrest and he can't pry me off.
"Ha! Take some of your own medicine for a change," I yell as he stalks off in anger.
It's a stupid idea anyway. I'm not afraid.
A few minutes later I hear a familiar voice off in the distance, calling my name. I stand up and look around until I see him waving frantically at me. That's it; make a complete fool of yourself. I shake my head and walk over warily. I'm on to his little tricks, and I won't fall prey to them again.
Stopping about twenty yards away, I ask him what he wants now. And then I notice the lady. Why does it always have to be a pretty lady? Why? She looks so sad and then I find out why. Someone thought it would be funny to hang her handbag from a limb of one of the trees. Way up high. Where these two couldn't reach it. And now Mr. Chivalrous says he can't get into the tree and would I please go get the bag?
Why does he do this to me?
It's a struggle, but I manage to get up into the tree. It's not one that lends itself well to climbing. Twenty feet … thirty feet… I lean out to reach for the bag when suddenly, it moves. By itself. I freeze, panic rising. It moves again and then I hear a tiny… squeak? Whimper? Suddenly a small, yellow, furry head pops out of the top of the bag and turns its big brown eyes on me. If it could talk, it would be pleading with me to save it from certain death.
I smile and speak softly. "It's okay little guy. I'll getcha down."
"Be careful," I hear from below me.
The impulse to shout back is strong, but I refrain from doing so. The last thing I need is an upset puppy on my hands. Slowly I reach out for the bag, and the pup's head disappears into the depths. He's so scared he's not even moving. I gently lift the bag off the branch and slowly scoot back toward the trunk, coming to rest in a sitting position.
Once secure in my arms, the puppy pops up from the bag and starts kissing my face. More shocked than scared, I pull the bag away from me, holding it at arms length. The pup is so excited to be rescued that he squirms madly, trying to escape the black hole that holds him captive.
"Quit squirming you little furball!" I command him. I must speak dog, because he instantly stopped, but I could feel his tail beating the side of the bag. "Now hold still so I can get us down in one piece," I command my new admirer.
It took longer to get down than up, but I finally drop the last 6 feet to the ground with my prize intact. The lady runs over to me and takes the bag from my arms as she kisses my cheek.
"Oh you wonderful, wonderful… you saved Pippi!"
She gently lifts the dog from the bag and smothers her with kisses, which the dog gratefully returns. "You're my special girl, yes you are! Did you thank the nice man for saving you? Did you?"
Pippi must have been overly excited, because she shook her head.
"I think we need to fix that problem then. Pippi wants to thank her hero…"
Before I can respond, a squirming mass of fur, with a 3-foot long tongue, is thrust into my arms. I try to yell, but decide to keep my mouth shut since a very grateful Pippi is currently bathing me. I finally manage to position her away from my face and hold her like a football. I pet the top of her head and watch my partner smile at me.
Wait a second…
I'm holding…. A DOG.
"Way to go, Bogg. Tomorrow we'll take the next step," he says with a wicked, knowing grin.
Smart kids give me a pain.