CALMING THE POMS

                        We’ve just been groomed…and aren’t we adorable!

Sometimes a photo is worth a thousand words!    I’ll never get over the fact that God delights in each of us and longs to be involved in our everyday lives, even in the mundane and seemingly unimportant.  This story may be uneventful for you, but it made all the difference in the look and presentation of these Pomeranians to the delight of their owners.

A delightful neighbor of ours would pass by our home with her two small Pomeranians on her way to the local park which was situated behind our home.    If I was relaxing on our patio or working in the yard, I would often notice their arrival.   It wasn’t the voice of the owners that announced their whereabouts, it was the tiny noise of the bark of each of the dogs.  It was as though they were barking out, “We’re here  in your vicinity and ready for you to come and pet us.”

After some months passed I decided one day that the next time I saw the eight little moving paws head our way, I would pause (maybe I should say paws) and introduce myself.    It was a sunny evening and I was out on our patio relaxing.  Yip, yip, yipe, yipe, I heard the little furry-like sounds approaching our area.  I peeked over the fence just in time to view the over abundant array of fur that adorned these two little Pomeranians.  Their owner was more than pleased to share her bundles of fur with me for a while, and I always looked forward to their arrival near our yard.

One day we got to talking about grooming them and the experiences this lady had with a professional groomer.   Apparently the groomer wasn’t at all verbally kind to her two wee ones, and even over-trimmed one of them.   This wasn’t a pleasant experience for either the owner or the dogs.   

What she didn’t know was that we had a Pomeranian and a Papillon, and that I enjoyed grooming them myself in my home.    During the course of the conversation I mentioned, that if she would like me to come over and groom them for her, in her own home, I would be pleased to do that and share some tips with her on how to be able to groom them herself.

She seemed pleased with the offer and after a month or so, she invited me over to see what I could do.   I remember assuring her that I would be tender with my voice and groom them the best way I knew how.

Now I had been grooming our dogs for six years and had a routine of procedures I followed down to an art.  But when the morning arrived for this grooming appointment, I found that I was extremely anxious about attempting to coiffure her tiny Poms.   She was very understanding and kind, which helped a great deal.   

It was at this point of anxiousness that I felt the need to “share in prayer…to the Lord” and ask Him for His help.   If you would have overheard my vocabulary, you may have laughed.   But then again, I wasn’t talking to you….but my Savior.  

I laid out my concerns one by one to the Lord.   It was like a blueprint of my trimming plans.  My last request was that He would “calm the Poms” and help me do a good job.   I need to insert here that Pomeranians can be very nervous and hyperactivity is their norm.    One cannot trim a “hyper pom” otherwise someone can get injured….the one with hair all over its body, or the one doing the trim job.

The ding, dong was the electric announcement that I had arrived at their door.   The welcoming dogs could be heard clear to the sidewalk.   Needless-to-say, I had a very furry and warm welcome.   My first thought was go get down to the dogs’ level so they could check me out at their height.   This meant getting on my hands and knees so proper introductions could be made.   They knew me from a safe distance, but they had never seen me with equipment before, specifically scissors, electric trimmer, nail cutters and the like. 

After the socializing, it was down to business.   My request to the owner was to stand back about ten feet and allow me to be in control of this upcoming coiffure appointment.    I began with the little female.   Getting down to their level was important, so I cushioned myself on the floor, picked her up, and laid her on my lap with her feet in the air.   Guess who “not in control” was now   I said a quiet, help me Lord and please “calm this wee one” so I could begin, and so she (and her adoring owner ten feet away) would enjoy the process.

It was INSTANT!   The little one immediately relaxed and the rest was history.  I was so happy, I almost went into tears.  I could tell by the look on her dear owner’s face, she was happy too.    The same result occurred when I began trimming the other dog.

All were pleased, and the dogs were relieved when I headed out the front door.  I had an inner grin all the way home realizing again how personable God wants to be…..if we would just invite Him into our every circumstance.

Proverbs 3:5 & 6   “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not to your own understanding; but in all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.”

These are the “finished” wee ones……..and arent’ they cute