Naming Facts and Dogs

One of our favourite pets, was a wonderful, tolerant (until in his later years), terrier who had the distinction (and I do not believe I have ever heard of it since), of not only having a first name, but a last name as well (We often suggested mother had named him after an old boyfriend). But if you stood on the steps to call him, on the occasions he had got away out the yard. Yelling out, ‘Michael O’Shaunnessy” at the top of our lungs, drew looks from passing strangers who inquired if a child was missing. They were then confused by our quizzical look, and perfectly natural answer was, “No our dog is.” “So, he’s with this Michael then?” they would enquire further. “No”, we would wonder what was wrong with them. “Michael O’Shaunnessy is our dog!”. They never seemed to hear us properly (or there was a neighbourhood wide spate of partial deafness) as they would say ‘Sorry?” Never understood it. It was simple. Honestly, what else would you name a dog?”

However it wasn’t the name, but the word my father had just called my sister. ‘Missy’. “Missy, the condescending put down. The ‘treat them like a teenage child’ noun, which had immediately been thrown out into the small space between my sister and my father. Well, as mentioned, this could be like a red rag to a bull where my sister was concerned. Never shy about speaking her mind on many occasions, she sometime forgot exactly what sort of occasions she could speak her mind, and get away with it. This may not have been one of those. Let me say here and now, having been involved in many confrontations in my life. When tempers are on the rise, it is always best to not say anything (I never have of course, I just know this to be true). If one could simply close the mouth, and prevent the brain, from total automatic engagement. And if possible, to stop or smoothly change ones behaviour, to prevent the body from automatically over-riding good sense, and causing some action one will later regret. It is surely far more  sensible to simply stop. To shut down. But we don’t do we (be honest)?

The French are even recognised in understanding the ‘momentary insanity’ action. When one will act without appropriate thought (this is attributed to them, but history does argue otherwise). The ‘crime de passion’ legal claim that we have heard so much about. Where one’s passion is not necessarily love or lust, but the passion of living itself. When one is so bereft of sense, driven in a moment of extreme despair to overstep the moral behaviour one would normally exhibit. To lose control, due to an extreme emotional state and then claim it wasn’t your fault, but someone drove you to it. Oh for goodness sake. Come on! You are responsible for you… if you lose control, then admit it!

(continued tomorrow)