I've mentioned my dog Sophy before. She's pretty smart. I knew that but this week she's taken things to a new level. 
She tried helping me with Wii Fit and seemed very surprised that I didn't appreciate her help so now she sort of grumbles but just watches. Mostly. She did, however, come up with a very effective method of stopping me from playing other Wii games. She climbs on my lap and starts kissing me! I start laughing so much that I put down the controller and pet her because who can be mad at someone who is being so affectionate?
Sophy has tried a number of things to get my attention when I'm working. When she realized that sitting there looking cute wasn't enough, she tried pawing my foot. When I shrieked but went back to ignoring her she tried barking. When that didn't work, she tried climbing in my lap and since she's a fairly large dog that's quite a trick!
But this week Sophy discovered something new. Sometimes when I need to unwind I use my Wii. Naturally, Sophy disapproves since she thinks if I'm not working I should be paying attention to her!
She tried helping me with Wii Fit and seemed very surprised that I didn't appreciate her help so now she sort of grumbles but just watches. Mostly. She did, however, come up with a very effective method of stopping me from playing other Wii games. She climbs on my lap and starts kissing me! I start laughing so much that I put down the controller and pet her because who can be mad at someone who is being so affectionate?
Then I was thinking about how rarely we humans are as smart as Sophy. When one thing doesn't work with a fellow human we care about, how often do we keep trying new things and how often do we keep trying the same thing--maybe more forcefully? Above all, if we want someone to pay more attention to us, how often do we get angry and vehemently say so versus how often do we become more loving--as Sophy has?
Here's to smart dogs and the wisdom they can teach us!
