Born to be Free

Somehow October slipped away from us before we could blink twice! We were so busy last month potty training little Aubrey, and I am proud to announce that we have been in big girl undies on errands in town, at church nursery, home, and even bedtime through the night for an entire two weeks! No more diapers, no more pull-ups, Aubrey is officially a big girl and we couldn't be more proud of her! This would make me a little sad to think of our "baby" being all grown up, but the thought of how we can put all that extra diaper money to good use cheers me right up!
In the midst of potty training a very busy little two year old girl, we've made an effort to go on evening walks with our Brittany Spaniel puppy, Boston. The first time we tried to walk Boston with a leash he would not have it. Feeling a little sorry for him in how hard it must be to be such a little guy living in a strange home, we decided not to push the issue right away. We got in the habit of taking walks where the neighborhood is still developing, and there is minimal traffic. He does a pretty good job of just keeping up with us leash free. Today I must have felt up to a new challenge. I decided to go out in the yard with the girls and put that leash on Boston, who has doubled in size since our last "training" session, and teach him to walk. The moment he saw the leash, he took off running trying desparately not to get caught by the woman with the leash. Once I finally harnessed him, he refused to walk. I had to literally drag him, and even then he flipped around like a fish out of water trying to get free. At one point he had both front paws holding the leash and was walking on his hind legs. It looked like some kind of dance you see in those dog shows on TV. Later in the day, we braved a walk down the street. Even though I'm embarrassed to admit it, this was his first real training session. He didn't catch on very well. We drug him around the neighborhood. The girls found it so funny. You should have seen him when he saw the fence leading to the back yard. He couldn't wait to get inside it and detach the leash.
I guess the whole adventure reminded me of us, and our longing for freedom. I really couldn't blame Boston for not wanting to be on a leash, but I wanted for him to understand that this was his ticket to leaving the confinement of the back yard. If he would walk with us, and obey our commands, a trip to the park with the girls would be a lot of fun. So far, he's staying home when we go to the park. Hopefully training session two will bring more progress.
We can be the same way at times, can't we? So often it's the difficult things, the trials, the testing, that are the very things that free us. At the time all we can see is the restriction of the leash, but if we'll allow God to teach us, and follow His guidance, we may just get to take a trip to the park!