Petty Issues

I like pets and admire people who keep them well. Growing up, we had pet dogs; courtesy of my dad….he loved and tendered them so much we all just warmed up to the act. In their generations, we had Buzo, who begat Austra, and then Ufo who begat Ufo (by the way, I hear the second generation Ufo is now a great grand mother!). In their times and in their own rights, some of these dogs were adorable, well-behaved and so friendly we sometimes went to visit friends with them.

I personally kept two pet dogs just before my Youth Service year……Jinny and Jaclyn.

They were like children to me and I loved them dearly. I admit here Jinny was my favourite; he was cuter, more responsive and more friendly; we bonded more. As Jaclyn grew, it was sort of apparent it had stray genes and it wasn't long before my mum sold it off (during one of my numerous trips). As bad as Jaclyn became, I guess I still loved it nonetheless; I recall I mourned its absence and worried about how its new owners would treat it, days on end. How my cousins made fun of me (they didn't understand, did they? Neither could they understand how painful it was to give  up Jinny when I had to finally move to Lagos. I think that somewhere in the future, when I'm in a neigbourhood where pets are allowed or when I have my own place, I’m going to keep one or two again; spaniels and/or Labradors this time.

Well, as much as I like dogs, I doubt I would ever walk into a Sunday morning service with one as I hear some people now do. Dogs in church. Isn’t that straight out of Hollywood? I mean, since when did naija graduate from walking dogs and driving around town with them to actually walking into a Sunday morning service with one? Not fluffy teddies or gadgets that are our latest fascinations but live and domesticated animals!

I imagine the stir and distraction; restless dogs, distracted worshippers, children afraid and perhaps screaming, and ushers at a loss on what to do. I almost think that this won’t happen in some churches anyway, mine for instance. As an usher, I’d either have the dog tethered safely away outside the sanctuary and allow the owner in, or calmly and politely ask the owner to take her dog home shikenah.

Now I guess the dog that came to church must have been cute and parade-grade (that’s perhaps the only reason why its owner would have brought it in the first place isn't it?). But aren’t there cuter and more behaved ones around? If we all came to church with our adorable pets (which may include but not limited to parrots, penguins, gold fishes, cats, and oh yes the cubs and calves), wouldn’t worship become a circus? And if it is, who would be sober?

Between you and I, I think God deserves better.