The Dog, the Cat and the Rat
The Dog, the Cat and the Rat
The dog was out for a stroll in the park. He was enjoying all the finer things of life; the fresh air of the outdoors, the taste of grass and sticks, and the smell of the other dogs’ when he greeted them. The dog knew a lot of other dogs and was very much liked by them. He was a popular dog.
He saw four young frolicsome youths dancing playfully to the tunes of the trees. He saw two idle and romantic adolescents sitting holding hands and kissing through the wheaty air. He saw a thorn bush frightening some boys as they tread through her carefully to collect their ball which had been overthrown. The dog saw so many wonderful things in the park. It was his favourite place.
The dog saw a little girl who was crying by the swings and this made him very upset and worried. She was holding tightly to her little bag. The dog had a very keen interest in helping others, especially cute little girls who were so nice and lovely. He ran up to the little girl to see what was wrong.
“Little girl, little girl, what is wrong? Why are your eyes so wet? What has happened? What is wrong little girl?” barked the dog in the softest tone a dog could bark.
“My mummy! I want my mummy!” cried the little girl.
“What happened? Where could she be?”
“I don’t know, I was swinging on this swing, and then when I came down, she was gone,” wept the little girl.
The dog knew he had to help the little girl. He just knew it!
“Little girl, little girl, do not cry. Jump on my back and I will carry you around and help you find your mother,” offered the altruistic dog so kindly.
“But my mummy always says not to speak to strangers.”
“I am no stranger! I am a dog! Dogs are man’s best friend! Dogs love people, it is in their nature. They especially like little girls like you. Come, we can find your mother.”
“Go away!” shouted the little girl, “I don’t know who you are, you could be bad! My mummy said never to speak to strangers. Leave me alone! Mummy! I want my mummy!” screamed the little girl.
The dog was very upset when the little girl didn’t let him help her. Luckily in her bag she had some snacks, so she wouldn’t get hungry. The dog could smell them with his perceptive nose. He had always thought that little girls were nice and sweet, but perhaps not all of them were. The dog knew he would help the next little girl he saw in distress, he just knew it.
The dog kept up his contented saunter through the park, sniffing in the pungent whiffs and listening to the whistle of the gentle breeze. He saw a mother pushing a pram with all the vibrant pride young mothers have. He saw two girls sitting giggling as they pointed at the boys who passed them. The dog did worry about the little girl however, and he hoped she was okay. He hoped the little girl had found her mother even though she had been dismissive of his helping paw.
The dog saw a cat sitting on a footwall made of brick, purring with a grouchy rumbling sound. The dog knew a lot of other dogs who hated cats, and he had heard a lot of bad things said about them. Amid the park there were some vicious gossipers, but the dog knew he was above it. He just knew it. He tried to give everyone a chance, despite the preconceptions his peers tried to force upon him. He was stringent in upholding his principles. He went up to cat.
“Hello Mr. Cat how are you,” he woofed, “It surely is a splendid day isn’t it?”
“What do you want with me? I am a cat and you are a dog.” purred the cat in suspicion of some entrapment.
“Oh I want nothing of, with or from you, Mr. Cat. I just like your fine company. I don’t like the idea that two cannot be friends because one is a cat and one is a dog. We should forget all the battles of the past between our kinds, and then I think we would get along quite well together.”
“Perhaps,” growled the cat, who was still not convinced.
“You will never guess what just happened to me!” started the dog, and then he told the cat about the little girl.
“Why would you try to help the little girl?” asked the cat in perplexity, “surely it is better not to involve yourself in matters that have nothing to do with you. If you involve yourself, something could go wrong and you would get blamed. That is why I like to keep afar and just sit here on my wall and watch. Watching things is better than doing things, that way there cannot be any adverse consequences.”
“What a cold hearted thing to say,” barked the dog. He was very upset by what the Cat had said to him. “Of course there is a very small risk of that happening, but the rewarding feeling of stepping in to help someone is worth that risk.”
“Well the little girl obviously didn’t think the risk of you being bad was small did she? Otherwise she would have let you help her. You must be a very mean looking dog for a little girl to reject your offer like that.”
The dog began to cry. He walked away sulking to look for other things in the park. He would make friends with the next cat he made. He knew it. He just knew it. Just because one cat was cruel didn’t mean they all had to be the same – he refused to let this convince him that what his dog friends had said was true. He would not hold a prejudice against other cats; he would be stringent in upholding his principles. The dog was very warm hearted and he would make an effort with the next cat he saw, who was sure to be more kind and open to discussion.
The dog walked about the park, breathing in the smells of a cooking barbecue some families were tending to. He went up to say hello to them and they gave him a piece of red meat, which tasted delicious. This greatly cheered him up after having met the cruel cat and suffered such hurtful insults. The dog ran around in circles, back and forth then to and fro, and the families threw sticks for him so he brought the sticks back to them. He wouldn’t want them to lose their sticks. However he did think it slightly odd that they persisted in throwing them, it was almost as if they didn’t want their sticks and they were trying to get rid of them. The dog wanted a stick for himself, but it would have been greedy to run away with the families ones and he could easily go find his own one anyway.
The dog strolled through the park at a steady rate, seeing as he was quite tired now. He was very out of breath and his tongue swayed around his mouth in a most ridiculous fashion. He found a shady spot under a tree and decided to take a nap. The tree was so kind to him! He thought about how if the tree had not been there to give him shade he would have had to suffer the stifling heat.
The dog was enjoying his nap when suddenly, out from a hole in the tree came a rat. All his dog friends had told him to stay away from rats. All his dog friends said they were dirty, shrewd and cunning creatures who liked to lie and play tricks on others. However, the dog was stringent in upholding his principles, and he was not going to hold anything against someone just because he had heard silly rumours about them.
“Hello Mr. Rat,” barked the dog in a friendly tone.
“That is very odd,” thought the rat. “Dogs don’t normally say hello to me. I shall inquire and see what special circumstances apply here.”
“Hello Mr. Dog!” exclaimed the rat, using the same friendly tone the Dog had showed him.
“It surely is a lovely day today isn’t it Mr. Rat?” asked the dog, happy to be in a conversation with someone other than a dog. The dog liked meeting new people and having a variety of friends.
“It surely is! What have you been doing today, Mr. Dog? What brings you to come sleep by my house?” asked the rat.
“Oh! I have had a strange day! The strangest of days.”
The dog told the rat all about the little girl, her flowing tears, her little bag and the cat.
“That is a sad story,” said the rat. “I hope she is okay now, and I really do hope she has found her mother. It is a great shame when things like this happen. There are a lot of horrible people out there who would wish to harm the little girl. But luckily she has that little bag with tasty snacks.”
“Yes I agree. That is why I wanted to help her. Everyone should help everyone else, the world would be much better that way. Much better indeed.”
The dog just knew this to be true. He just knew it. He spoke to the rat for a bit longer, who seemed to be very kind and take an interest in everything the dog had to say. The dog thought that perhaps a strong friendship could grow between them. He said farewell, and set off into the park again.
He saw so many fabulous things in the park! So many amazing things! He saw some of his dog friends and said hello. He saw a nice old lady feeding the birds by the pond. He saw some men playing cricket, using sticks as stumps, and he thought about how lucky they were to have found such perfectly straight and chewable sticks. He saw the cat sitting on the wall and went up to say hello again, maybe this time the cat would be more pleasant.
“Hello Mr. Cat!” cried the dog.
“You again? What do you want from me? You are terribly persistent. Persistency is hardly a good way to make a friend.”
“Well not everyone is so rude as you, Mr. Cat. I in fact have today personally met someone who is kind, friendly, honest and good to talk to.”
“Oh really?” mocked the Cat. “And who would that be?”
“I met a fine rat, who although he is a rat and many would hold that against him, I do not. You, Mr. Cat, have not managed to alter my opinions; I will still give everyone a chance. Everyone deserves a chance. You will become a very lonely cat if you are always so rude to everyone.”
The cat began to laugh and walked away down the wall. The dog was pleased that he had spoken his mind and he felt he had got a lot off his chest. He walked off down the path and thought it might be a good idea to go to the swings, to check if the little girl had found her mother.
He turned the corner to see the little girl sitting on the swing, flying through the air with glee. She giggled with delight as her mother pushed her back and forth then to and fro. The dog was ecstatic! He ran with a mighty haste towards the little girl and her mother, barking as he went.
“Little girl! Little girl!” he howled. “How did you find your mother?”
“A rat brought her to me!” she cried.
