The Owner says we are Leaving Europe Next Week. She seems Rather Woeful about it.

Do not worry, I say, as the Moral Dog likes to be Positive at All Times. At least you have a Moral Dog beside you. Can I come?

You have to come, says the Owner Mournfully. We all have to Go Together.

This does not Sound So Bad, I say. Where are we going? The last time we Went Somewhere there were Waves and Rocks, and a Pub with Chips.

We are not Going Anywhere, says the Owner with her Gloomy Expression. It is like Getting on a Bus with the Prime Minister. The Doors will Close but We do not Know our Destination.

This Makes No Sense, I say. Why would we Get on the Bus if we do not Know our Destination? We might finish up Somewhere we Do Not Want to Be.

We are Getting on the Bus in the Hope that We Will Arrive Somewhere Better in the End, says the Owner. It is a Leap of Faith.

Somewhere with Chips? I ask.

There is a Possibility that there will be Chips, says the Owner.

That is Excellent, I say. What are we Waiting For? Let us Leap onto the Bus at Once.

But there is also a Possibility that there will be No Chips, says the Owner.

This does not Sound so Good, I say. Why are we getting on the Bus at all if it is Fraught with such Uncertainty Regarding Chips? I ask.

We have All Agreed to Get on the Bus, says the Owner. We Took A Vote. We were Promised there would be Chips.

There seems an Obvious Flaw in your Explanation, I say. A Leap of Faith seems to be Rather more Uncertain than That Promise Implies.

Indeed, says the Owner. Leaps of Faith are Fraught with Possibilities, both Good and Bad.

At least if we are on the Bus with the Prime Minister there will be Plenty of Cake, I say, hoping to Cheer the Owner Up with my Obvious Practicality.

I wouldn’t Bank on the Prime Minister sharing his Cake, says the Owner. He is Well Known for both Having It and Eating It. Besides, he will be too Busy Steering the Bus.

Can the Prime Minister drive? I ask.

Nobody knows, says the Owner, although her Facial Expression suggests that she Thinks Not.

Do not Worry, I say. The Moral Dog took a Leap of Faith when he Left his Family and Came to Live with the Owner, I say, even though the Owner could have proved to be the Kind of Owner who Ate all the Cheese and Refused to Play with Squeaky Cat on a Regular Basis. Yet imagine, if he had Refused to take such a Leap of Faith. Think what the Moral Dog would have Missed. Think how much Emptier his Life Might have Been.

This is True, says the Owner, brightening up at last. If the Moral Dog had not Taken a Leap of Faith The Moral Dog and the Owner would not now be Joined in the Eternal Bonds of Human-Dog Affection that have Evolved and Strengthened down the Millennia since the Very First Wolf Came to the Camp Fire and Sat Beside the Ancestral Human in Companionship, Trust and Mutual Regard.

Actually, I say, that was not Quite what I meant. I meant the Moral Dog would never have had Chips.

Honestly Hergest, says the Owner. You are a Great Help.

Thankyou, I say Modestly.

The Moral Dog. Comfort in Adversity, however Hopeless.

Categories: dignity dog dog philosophy

Hergest the Hound

I am a dog of many thoughts.