Friday, October 5, 2007
Show and Tell--Muffin's Babies--A Picture
Can it be Friday already?!
It is, and that means it's Show and Tell time!
Go on over to Kelli's to get in on the fun.
My Show and Tell this week is a pen and ink drawing that hangs in our family room. Of course, it has a story!
When we moved to Tennessee in 1971, Lee worked as assistant editor of Home Life, a magazine which does just what its name implies, supports life in the Christian home. After a couple of years Lee left Home Life and went on to other positions and responsibilities with his employer. However, he did occasionally write articles for that and other magazines.
One of those articles was about our boys, their dog Muffin, and her babies. The name of the article was "Muffin's Babies." Muffin was a border collie mix--probably a little Spaniel and something else. We found her at the Hum*ane Society and she was a sweetheart! We didn't know her background because she was a lost or stray dog. She had been well-trained and was very affectionate--one of the best natured dogs I have ever known. She was about two years old when we got her and she was our dear family pet for about four years.
Muffin died--of kidney failure--not long before Lee wrote the article. Our family had been devastated at the loss of our beloved pet. In the midst of missing Muffin, Lee and I realized that, through her, our boys were learning yet another life lesson. She had taught them so much--joy, caring for someone else, responsibility, and even the birth process.
Lee's article focused on how Muffin had helped our children learn so many things about life in such a natural way. He did not; however, go into detail about how Muffin came to have seven puppies. Seven puppies, that, BTW, I had to find homes for! Here's how that little story went.
Kevin, age three, came in and proudly announced, "I opened the garage door and let Satan in because he wanted to see his friend."
Yes, Muffin and SATAN were friends. Satan was a black lab who had CLIMBED our four foot fence to try to "visit" Muffin. Muffin was in confinement--ahem!--in our garage. Of course I rushed out to the garage. AND, of course, I was too late. A few weeks later we had puppies!
Muffin not only taught our boys lessons, she taught the parents a lesson. As Bob Barker would say, "Have your pets spayed and neutered!" We did!
The artist who did the art work for the article gave Lee his rendering of the picture. I had it framed for Lee's birthday and it hung in his office for several years. Later it came home to hang in our family room. One interesting thing about it is, that even though the artist did not know our boys, he came very close to capturing them in the picture--especially the younger one. It really looks like Kevin at that age.
Labels: Just Having Fun, Show and Tell
19 Comments:
Thanks for the story and what a neat picture!
What a wonderful thing to have and I love the story that goes with it. Another treasure and memory!
Susan
Oh, I love this story. What a nice keepsake and memory.
What a treasure!
Love the picture and story that went with it. I suppose many of us can relate to "confined pets getting an unexpected visitor"
Then Mom usually has to find homes for all those unexpected pups or kittens :)
Wow...Myrna, I just loved this story. It is so tender and sweet...and this drawing, besides capturing a special time in your family's life- it also spotlights your husband's writing career in a way.
Very special! :)
Muffin looks like the shelties we had for years. One of my shelties was lost (long story) the day after Christmas a couple of years ago. I often wonder who found him or what happened to him. Hopefully he wondered into somebody's yard and is now some nice family's dog. I still look for him as I drive.
That is a gorgeous piece. And what a wonderful story to go along with it. I have a funny picture in my family room. It is about 4 feet long, and it is of people from the waist down, showing off their shoes. It is quite a conversation piece.
The story is that all the little girls in the picture are me ... at age 6. And all the little boys are my brother ... at age 5.
It was an ad for a shoe company we did in the early 60s.
I love artwork that has special meaning, and yours certainly does.
Such a beautiful drawing with such special meaning behind it. Loved hearing the story of Muffin!! xox
What a sweet story and a wonderful treasure, Myrna! The picture is just beautiful!
Kelli
How sweet is that. The pen and ink drawing is great. Enjoy...
What a nice story and picture! I had to chuckle at the "opening the door to Satan!" Lots of lessons from doing that!
We just lost our beloved little dog on July 2nd. We're still grieving his loss.
Katherine
What a neat story and picture!
what a neat story and a nice picture to commemorate the story. i'd have it hanging, too.
you left a comment asking about my link of the day - shoeboxed. i checked it out a little bit (as i do all my links) but since i really don't buy anything online, i didn't go too far with it. i don't remember exactly where i got the link but i do remember the blogger recommending it.
What a neat story! It's fun that your family has such a treasured piece of art!
What a neat picture and a great story to g along with it too!
Very touching story--it is neat the way the Lord works and teaches us. I praise God for the gifts he gives his people--ie your husband writing; the person that did the drawing--so many ways God can use people to touch hearts!
Myrna,
Thanks for blessing us with this picture and story....
Thanks for visiting and commenting..Betty
A great picture and story. Thanks for sharing.
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