A dog who just is a dog.

A grand old friend.

I watched this old dog trot along beside its owner. I wondered how many years it had done this very act. There would have been days when it bounced along and did not always do what it was told, it would have had a determined mind of its own.

But the years have passed and this old fellow has lost that youthful spring and some of the dark black hair of its face has turned to grey. Now it is happy just to wander along beside its owner. 

It will have over the years been given a ticking off for thigs it has done and it will have learned and accepted the lesson. 

The one thing that I am sure of is that no matter what these two did together this old dog would never point the finger of blame at its owner. he would happily accept what came his way.

How I wish we humans could accept each other in the same way. We live in a blame culture when everything that ever happens to us that we do not like has to be blamed on another. Our news is like one long list of blames. Even in sports, somebody else has to be blamed when something does not go as expected. it is the referees' fault, the other person on the team is to blame. So it goes on and on.

I heard of a student prank that explains just what I mean. I remember so many of the pranks I played as a student all for laughs I am sure this one was very much the same.

One evening several college students spread some very strong smelling cheese on the upper lip of a sleeping flatmate. 

Upon awakening the young man sniffed, looked around, and said, "This room stinks!" He then walked into the hall and said, "This hall stinks!" Going into the kitchen area he exclaimed, "The whole world stinks!" 

Once we start down the road of the blame game it is so very easy to continue to the stage where nothing is ever right with the world. Why do you think there are so many grumpy old men around? I wonder are there grumpy old women?

it seems that we do not have grumpy old dogs. How I wish we could be a bit more like them and sort ourselves out rather than others.

All blame is a waste of time. 

No matter how much fault you find with another, and regardless of how much you blame others, it will not change us for the good. 

The only thing blame does is to keep the focus off ourselves when we are looking for external reasons to explain our unhappiness or frustration. We may succeed in making another feel guilty of something by blaming them, but we will not succeed in changing whatever it is about us that is making us unhappy. 

There is nothing surer than the fact that people who are out to find fault seldom find anything else.

On the other hand, those that are always out to see the best in others see nothing but the best others have and that in turn can only lead to happiness. 

Have a fun-filled day surrounded by wonderful people.