The Sacred Garden Showdown!

The minute I saw him in Aunty Bev's sacred garden, I concluded that because he was uninvited, he must be an unsafe intruder looking for trouble. I had to take action and scare him off as fast as I could so no-one was hurt. So, I barked. And I barked. Louder and louder! And even louder! Was my strategy working? Unfortunately not! The intruder seemed unbothered by my demands and stayed annoyingly calm. And he showed no sign of leaving anytime soon. So, I did what any responsible friend would do. I took off to warn Aunty Bev she had a situation on her hands that she needed to handle.

A few days later, I was back to visit and immediately went to see what had happened. Can you imagine my shock when I saw that very same intruder was back in the sacred garden, sitting on the bench like he was in charge?

Now I was mad. This was not okay. Refusing to be dismissed because of my cute floofy looks I summoned more courage than I knew I had. I raised my tail straight up in the air, sending a messsage that I meant business and was about to put an end to this, once and for all. Then I started growling from the depths of my chest — another warning that things were about to get real and intense. My voice became became louder and braver with each breath that I took, proving to our intruder that my bite would be as big as my now ferocious-sounding bark.

But the intruder? He still didn't move. He hadn't even blinked. My blood felt like it was starting to boil, and it wasn't because of Arizona's summer heat. It was because I was absolutely furious inside! Who did this intruder think he was — taking no notice of my barking and instuctions to leave? This was Aunty Bev's garden, and if anyone else was going to be in charge, it was me, and nobody else.

I was determined to get the upper paw and win this battle. It was time to change tactics and implement my fail-proof plan that almost always gets me everything I want. I took two big steps forward and stood two inches from his face. It was time for the Toffy stare-down strategy to get underway. From past expawrience with Mama, I knew exactly what to do. I had to look directly into his eyes, whether they blinked or not, and never break my glare—not even for a second. He'd eventually give in from the unwavering intensity and pressure of my stare, and do what I wanted: which was for him to leave Aunty Bev's sacred garden. I stood tall and strong, confident and certain in my belief that I would win. Nothing was going to stop me now. At some point — and I'm not sure exactly after how long — I got the sense my Toffy-stare-down strategy was taking much longer than usual to get a result. But I wasn't going to stop until this job was done. But then, out of nowhere, a huge gust of wind blew through the yard. It created a noise so loud I thought both my ears had exploded. Naturally, I looked to see what it was. Who wouldn't? And because of this tiny, one-second distraction, I broke the most impawtant rule of my Toffy-stare-down tactic. I broke eye contact. All the intensity and uncomfortableness I'd worked so hard to build up, instantly vanished — just like that annoying gust of wind. To make matters worse, when I looked back at our intruder, it seemed he hadn't flinched, blinked, or moved even an inch. He had remained completely calm and unbothered by the sudden and deafening sound of the wind chimes that had startled me and destroyed my plan. Or the leaves swirling around his bench. Or the dogs next door, barking louder than I ever could.

I felt humiliated and defeated. I just wanted to give up and disappear. I immediately closed my eyes so that unwanted intruder couldn’t see how I was feeling or my tears welling up. I took a deep breath, like Mama had taught me do when I was stressed. But it seemed I’d need another. So, I took one more. And then another, and another. I don't know how long I'd been breathing like this when I noticed my brain had gone quiet and my heart had calmed down. I wasn't irritated by the leaves blowing aroumd me. And the barking from next door seemed to have faded. I wasn't mad or aggravated. In fact, I didn't feel bothered by anything right then, not even the unwanted intruder who was still sitting on the bench. Instead I felt like I'd been in a deep and peaceful sleep.

How did this happen? How had I managed to calm myself down? And I had the answer. I'd just done the exact same thing I often did in my Zen Den at home when I needed to reset and get in a peaceful and pawsitive zone. And I realized it was also what the intruder had been doing all along too. Sitting still. Calm. Quiet. Focused. To get a a clear head and feel really good.

So maybe he wasn't unsafe after all. Maybe he wasn't here to uspset me or disrespect me. And he probably wasn't being rude and ignoring me or looking to cause any kind of trouble. Maybe he'd come to remind me of something I already knew but had never applied it in the real world, in real time. Or maybe he was just another good soul who needed a space to sit and reset his brain and get back into his peaceful zone. And he'd picked Aunty Bev's sacred garden because it was the perfect fit. And if this was the reason for his visit, I'm sure I would choose the exact same spot if I was ever in his shoes.

So I decided to let him stay and visit for as long as he needed , so he could find the peace that he wanted. And if he was still there when I come back again, I promised I'd sit and stay with him and we could help each other become more grounded.

What I learned from this unexpected situation was that true strength isn't about barking the loudest. Or only being able to find your peace in the quiet of your home. It's about holding your ground and keeping it together when you're out in the world and it's getting too loud to handle. And that's something I still need to master so next time something makes my heart want to stop or my blood start to boil, I won't need to bark so loudly that my ears feel like they want to explode. Instead, I hope I'll be able to quietly find my way back to being calm and centered. I hope that next time I come to visit Aunty Bev, my friend on the bench will still be there, sitting in the center of the sacred gardem, so we can practice finding our peace together and help each other become true Zen Masters.  

Toffy xoxo #lifewithtoffy #toffysdogblog #thinkliketoffy

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