When I grow up, I want to be the man my dog thinks I am

"Wow.  You are awesome." -- Dog

Let's be honest.  My dog thinks I'm a far better person than I actually am.  I'm not saying I'm a bad person necessarily, just that he thinks I'm on an entirely different level.  

When I'm eating something I shouldn't, he doesn't judge ... he just looks at me with a, "you going to give me some of that?" look on his face.

When I'm being a jerk (not as often as you might think, and you can't trust my wife on that one -she's obviously crazy), my dog still thinks I'm awesome.

When I walk out of the room, then back in, he goes nuts!  Tail wagging, happy to see me.  I'm just that exciting, apparently.

Let's be honest, he's dead wrong, but he seems to see something in me that even I have a hard time seeing sometimes.  He sees what I could be, I think.  He thinks I can do no wrong - that I'm the most giving, most selfless, most awesomest dude ever.  Yeah - ever. 

So, my goal - from this point forward - is to be the person my dog thinks I am.  All I have to do is make it so everyone with whom I cross paths leaves wagging his or her tail (metaphorically speaking, of course).  To be clear, I don't mean I plan to appease everyone I cross paths with, but to ensure I do right by everyone with whom I come in contact.  Whether it's my family, my friends or complete strangers, it's my duty to make them "aware" of the world I believe we could be living in.  Whether they decide to follow suit is up to them, but I firmly believe that most aren't even aware that anything is all that wrong with our world.  And many more believe it's hopeless to think that we can make a difference through relatively small acts.  

• How about by loving no matter what - even your enemies?  
• How about by helping everyone you have the ability to help, even if it causes you some discomfort?  
• How about consorting with people you'd never be "caught dead with" for once?  Trust me - they're people, too.  

So, my point is not to make people feel okay about the life they may be living, but not to judge either.  Rather my point is, as someone who knows how to be the person worthy of my dog's admiration, it's my job to actually be that person, live through example, and make everyone I know aware of what I and many others know ... that this world is not about me.  It's not about making myself comfortable.  It's about taking the blessings I've been so graciously given and turning them into gold - fanning the flames and turning the small spark of my existence into an inferno of goodness, making a difference and inciting others to do the same with THEIR sparks.  

We're in this together as a world-family.  Your brother and sister aren't just the people with whom you share Christmas and Thanksgiving, but the total stranger who's been out of work for 12 months and is discouraged, and the girl who thinks demoralizing herself is the only way, and the starving child in Nicaragua who has no access to water that's even close to clean.  Our lives are not for comfort - that should not be our pursuit.  But, unfortunately, it has been my pursuit for a long time, believing that I truly deserve something more than others, even though I'm already blessed beyond imagination.  That stops now.

Let's do this together.  We can do it.  We know what Charley thinks (aside from "Do I smell sausage?") - that we ARE those selfless people.  That we ARE beyond reproach.  Let's prove Charley right.  

Who's with me?!