Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Diamonds WERE a Girl's Best Friend

I dislike the saying "Diamonds are a girl's best friend". While I appreciate and covet diamonds I'd hardly call them a friend let alone a best friend. Friendship is supposed to be based on wonderful qualities like supportiveness, caring for one another, trust, fun, etc.

So why is it that girls get stuck with diamonds? While pretty to look at and wonderful to have it paints the picture that women care more about status, material goods and shallow relationships. How do you deduce this you might ask. Well I'd tell you that a diamond can't hold you hair after too many drinks because your one true love left you for another woman. And diamonds can't call you to tell you their juicy gossip or big news. But more importantly because diamonds can't love you back.

Men are lucky, they get dogs as their best friend. Now you may say well Courtney dogs can't hold your hair or gossip with you and to that I have an answer. Every dog owner I know has had a horrible thing happen to them at least once. And most will cry and reject the comfort of any friend. Nearly every dog owner I know tells me their pet came to their side and put their head on their lap and just stayed there.


It may not be holding back hair but it is full and unconditional support. I've had pets protect me when scared, comfort me when sick and love me when sad. No questions asked and never an eye rolled. Never wondering if they wish they were somewhere else or that I wasn't being so pathetic. Just true, non-judging unconditional love. Sure beats a diamond out any day of the week to me.

I have a theory; most dog owners agree with it but we may be biased. My theory is that as many people before me have stated the Dog is God spelt backwards; a reflection of God. This may be lofty but I truly believe a dog's love for his or her owner is similar to God's love for us.

Hold up you say. How dare I compare one of God's creatures to him and it not be a human. I get it, I respect it, but from what I have been taught about God's love it is more similar to a dog's love than it will ever be to ours.

God's love is unconditional. So is our parents you say. True, parents have every intention of loving us unconditionally. But as with any human relationship there will be hurt, lies and even betrayal in their lives, our lives and even our relationships. Even though our parents try to love us no matter what it is never as perfect as God's. We say mean and hurtful things or do things and that love shifts slightly. Wow I sound like love is awful. But it's not. Human love is complicated, requires work and is far from perfect.

Now let's talk about God's love. God's love is simple. He loves us despite our sins, because we all sin. He loves us when we hurt him, deny him, etc. He loves us all the same, even though we are unworthy of that love. God's love just is. Never faltering, always forgiving; it is completely different from human love.

Dogs are more like God than most people think. To paraphrase Marley & Me a dog doesn't care if you are a brain surgeon or a carpet salesman. Dogs don't care if they have the latest and greatest toys, leashes, bowls, bed, etc. They get excited when you come home or rub their belly. They get excited to go on walks or in the car. Most like when you throw their ball. Doesn't sound materialistic or greedy at all. You can yell at a dog for misbehaving and the very next day it still gets just as excited when you walk in the door from work.



Dogs love just is. They love us despite the fact tht we've gained five pounds or hog the remote. They love us even if we snore or talk too much. They don't mind our embarrassing jokes or bad humor. They'll watch our chick flicks and let us dress them up in hideous clothing or paint their nails. Dogs are easy going. Love for a dog is simple. They just do it. They don't know how not to love us unconditionally. Just like God.



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