Fire and Nice

Hello my friends! Come join me on the Couch and let’s get cozy. COVID cozy, actually, so pretend my head is resting on your leg and my eyes are looking adoringly up at you. And I, in turn, will imagine you are rubbing my ears and telling me I am the cutest dog ever.

Today, my friends, I want to talk about dumpster fires and mankind.

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Lately I’ve been overhearing the humans say that this year has been like a dumpster fire. There are Christmas ornaments and refrigerator magnets that sell this idea, and it’s all about 2020 being this big horrible thing that you can’t believe is happening in YOUR neighborhood. Everything is just going up in flames, the smoke is billowing up so high it obscures the sunlight, and neighbors are milling about in confusion.

“How did this happen? Who started it? What are we going to do about it?”

Some say a dumpster fire is “an utterly calamitous or disastrously mishandled situation.” Another definition calls it “a situation, person or thing that is disastrous and out of control.”

Well, I just want to point out that - while the situation does sound pretty bad - a real dumpster fire does have SOME ability to shed light and warmth onto the people nearby. Sure, it’s not as pretty as a glowing log beneath a decorated mantle, but it’s still a FIRE. It’s still WARM. It provides LIGHT. If you think about it, a person could grab a stick, shove it in the flames, and then lift it high above their head. Or use it to light a smaller, more cozy, fire of their own.

If you did that, wouldn’t you be spreading a little light and warmth to the people around you? Even if the initial source was from an actual dumpster fire?

To be honest, us dogs define a dumpster fire a little differently than people do. Our definition looks more like this: A situation that enables owners to be home with their pets, allows for more frequent hikes and neighborhood walks, offers more opportunity to loudly greet the local delivery or restaurant take-out people (and thus leads to more treats to encourage us to be quiet), and all-in-all increases the quality of life for a family pet.

Thus, if you look hard enough, you will find the good in every situation, even dumpster fires.

Speaking of GOOD, now let’s talk about MANKIND, also known as humankind.

When I first heard the word ‘mankind’, I thought it meant that humans were innately kind. Compassionate. Watching out for their fellow humans.

Then I asked Alexa (thank goodness there is a dog version), and she said instead that 'mankind' was a noun that was referring to the entire human race. The word “kind,” when used all by itself, is an adjective, which means it modifies - or changes - a noun. Honestly, this is all a bit confusing for a dog.

It would appear, however, that a kind man is not necessarily the same thing as mankind.

But it got me to thinking. What if we made December the month of Honor the Adjective? Since KIND is a part of mankind, let’s focus on the adjective. Be kind, because you are a part of the human race.

And I would like to join in the fun. I was trying to think of something that I, as a dog, could do, and I came up with the perfect idea.

I will take the words “dog treat”, which together is a noun, and flip it around to say “treat dog”. I think that would turn 'treat' into an adjective, right? Which would imply that I, Sophie, am a dog that is getting a treat.

By Honoring the Adjective, I will thus make the sacrifice of getting many treats a day (remember, I am only doing this to uphold my side of the bargain). At the same time you will work on being kind to one another. We can report back to each other in January and see how things went.

So our job going forward is to spread light and warmth, be kind to others, and eat lots of treats. Sounds like December is going to be an awesome month!

Love, Sophie

PS: My mom wants to get in on the fun, so she will be looking into adjective opportunities presented by the noun “wine glass.”