They love to work and work to love

Rambo a/k/a Sir Snooze-a-lotHave you ever seen Love Leads the Way? The 1984 movie about how the The Seeing Eye was founded?

I love that film. It's a true story. We watched the video with our kids when they were all still school-age. Somebody cried at the end. Oh! That was me.

I think Audrey cried too. TG might've misted up. It was good.

There is a blind gentleman in our church and whenever I get the chance, I tease his seeing-eye dog. We'll be walking out after a service, for example, and the dog will be in front of me.

On his harness is a sign that says something like, Please don't pet me! I'm working!

Right away I pet him and say, "How am I supposed to not pet you when you're so cute?"

Or sometimes I change it and say, "If you don't want me to pet you, don't be so cute."

No matter. Whether I make it a question or a statement, the answer is always the same: much tail wagging (by the dog) and a big smile (from his blind master).

I don't know the dog's name but I know this: he (if he is in fact a he) never makes a sound. You'll stroll behind his pew (his humans sit at the very back) and that long tail is often splayed out into the space where folks walk, and I reckon a time or two he's been unintentionally trodden upon. But he never reacts.

Until last Sunday. The service had already gotten underway. At one point it was quiet for a few beats and that's when everybody heard it.

WOOF!

The bark reverberated all around the sanctuary, up to the rafters and back down. Everyone laughed. It was great.

While visiting relatives in Ohio this past July, on Wednesday night we went to prayer meeting. After the service I noticed there was a ruckus in the lobby.

I asked someone what was going on. Seeing-eye dogs! A pair of them!

Turns out two adult blind sisters were fresh back from The Seeing Eye where they had each trained with a beautiful guide dog. Because of the dogs, the girls had gotten a house of their own and were going to be able to live apart from their parents for the first time ever.

Would you believe? I had my camera with me.

Those dogs sat there and let dozens of people of all ages stroke and scritch and nuzzle and nudge and push and pull and tweak and tousle. Their only response was to gaze plaintively from time to time at the little pouch in the seat beside their owners. The pouch that held the treats.

They got lots of treats that night.

When we visited New York last May, I had a nice time with a few bomb-sniffing dogs in the Staten Island Ferry terminals.

We had a wait on the Staten Island side before returning to Manhattan and I noticed the dogs standing or sitting patiently beside their officers.

You didn't even know or hear what the officer said that would make one or the other or both dogs approach someone or something and begin sniffing.

Those dogs were so friendly. Kids and adults alike were drawn to them. Nobody was told they couldn't touch.

I noticed another working dog sitting beside the escalator on the Manhattan side, right where people stream in and out. He was such a pretty red-brown color and he was sporting a purple boo-boo bandage.

I asked if I could take pictures of the dogs on the Staten Island side and the officer said sure. In one of them you can't see the dog's face because he jumped up on me just as I was trying to get a close-up!

And he hadn't been told to sniff me for explosive materials. At least I don't think so. He just wanted to lick my face.

I love working dogs. If you see one today, tell them thank you and take a second to scritchy-scratch between their ears.

You'll be rewarded with a heartfelt tailwag at the very least.