The Testimony of Dogs in Gaza

What Will They Say?

In my house, I have 3 direct lines to Heaven. They are named Oso, Koko, and Bobi. They are my beloved puppies. Even though they don’t use words, the way they speak is profound. Their love vocabulary is deep and meaningful. I often forget they don’t actually speak.

I believe that one day, in another place and time, they will speak to me with voices. I wonder what they will say.

“Baby Pictures” of my babies: Oso, Koko, and Bobi

Over the years, Superman (a.k.a. my husband) and I have rescued over 50+ dogs. We lost count after the first decade or two and my son had to start keeping a list. Each one had a story, a history, a personality. Each carried a unique nuttiness that no one could explain, but that always induced laughter. And love. Even the ones that had been hurt or broken by other people before we knew them.

That is the magic of dogs. They love you no matter what. If they could, they would bring you a cup of tea when you are not feeling well. Or do the laundry for you when you run out of clothes. Or play fetch with you for two hours because they think you like it.

They are a gift to humanity. To give us humanity. They are living examples of everything good that humans can muster:

• true loyalty

• selflessness

• unconditional love

• kindness

• generosity

• companionship

• sacrifice

• service

• non-judgment

• full acceptance, and

• forgiveness.

They love us for who we are, not what we own, what we look like, or what we do for a living. Because we recognize these qualities in them, they are the proof of our own capacity for the same.

Anyone who has had a dog knows what I am talking about. They are pure love, in the same category as babies. If a puppy doesn’t melt your heart, you need to figure out what the heck happened to your heart and go fix it.

That same purity in babies and puppies connects us with divinity. They are the closest to God on earth, before humans tamper with it. They say dogs have the consciousness of a two year old child. Indeed, both sets of eyes emit the same look of love, trust and innocence. Until someone undoes it. They are completely dependent.

Think of all that divine generosity: the gifts of dogs sprinkled all around the world for us, ready to give, to love, to accompany, and to aid. To make us laugh, feel loved, and appreciated. Like all gifts of creation from our Creator, how have we received the gift, cared for it, cherished it, and honored it? We know the opposite is true.

I think of the dogs and other gifts of creation in Palestine, where humans, earth, and animals are being bombed mercilessly by other humans at this moment. Puppies and babies, indiscriminately killed, or worse, abandoned and alone, having lost their caretakers. No food, no water, no shelter. No understanding of what is happening.

What have we done to the generous divine gifts we were given? Ironically, many of these same humans that bomb babies and puppies will go home to their own babies and dogs and see no parallels. Would they ever imagine leaving their babies and dogs with no food, no water, no comfort or care? It is hard to imagine the cold heart that cannot feel for all babies, and instead, who feel comfortable devolving into a soulless discourse on the “children of light” versus the “children of darkness.” Are there also puppies of light and puppies of darkness?

My heart breaks over a video of an emaciated dog running in terror alongside humans running for cover as they are bombed. Where is this dog supposed to run? Will the humans running for cover help him? I cry over the video of the dog wandering amidst the rubble, looking for his person, his friend, and caretaker. He will not stop sniffing and searching until he can search no more. I am devastated by the news that starving dogs are resorting to eating human carcasses because the Israeli bombing was so intense that no one could bury their dead.

I am grateful for the few videos I could find of Palestinians giving their own precious water to grateful stray dogs; of Palestinian teenagers hand-carrying their beloved cats as they were forced to evacuate to God knows where; of the only shelter in Gaza for dogs, Sulala Animal Rescue. The video below from November 8th was the last available reporting I could find. God only knows if they are still there.

I believe that one day, in another place and time, all of these babies will speak to us with voices. I wonder what they will say.