and behold, I saw a bay dog

And in those days it came to pass, that two, in the form of male and female came to my gate. In appearance they were as ordinary folks, but I knew that this was not like other meetings, for it had been given to me to know that these two had descended to this place as from upon latitudes higher up.

And they bade me to come out from my gate, for they had in their chariot of crimson something which they had come to show me.

They said that they had heard of my need, they had heard of my cry for deliverance from unexplained noises in the darkness. Therefore they had brought to me a guardian, a beast of warning and possibly even defense, so that I might not be caught alone and unaware in foreign lands.

Explaining with zeal that I should discern beyond appearances, they unveiled mine eyes, and there in the back of their pickup I did behold a yellow dog. A beast unlike any that my eyes had considered before, and it was given to me to know immediately that it's name was Famine.

Soon then did I become aware of the scent of a multitude of wounds on it's bone stretched hide and it was given to me to know that it's other name was Pestilence.

Heavily did that beast breath in the hot afternoon sunlight, and without vitality did it's eyes gaze upon me as if I were but a dream and not a son of Eve. Then did I comprehend that it's other other name was surely very close to Death.

With great trepidation then, did I stretch out my hand toward the beast, and as it cowered away from me with a slow and tired fear, verily, I knew, War was not one of it's names. Verily, War was not one of it's names.

And I noticed that the Lady that had come to us kept using such a pronoun as to indicate that this was a seed bearing animal rather than a nursing animal. Glancing as I then glanced did disclose male parts. And I spoke to the two saying that the animal had like unto growths that suggested it was a nursing animal.

Then it was said to me, that many of the seed bearing dogs in this place have large nipples. And I knew then that this dog was an abomination having as if man boobs.

But knowing what that is like, I began to feel the first stirrings of sympathy for this accursed creature, which was to become my dog.

Since coming to Belize I have begun to understand the word providence in the sense of what is needed, is provided to us. The only catch is that we must not be caught up in our pre-conceived ideas about what we want or we will miss what we need.

Like the 4x4 truck that had been converted to run on cheap butane instead of gasoline. Butane which would never be politically expedient to tax as EVERYONE uses it as a cooking fuel. Gasoline being a product mostly only used by the well off. The truck was exactly what we needed. But all the tires were flat. So we walked past it for months. Then one day all the tires were new, inquiring, I found that the price was affordable. But I wanted to see what else was available, and so we walked past that truck for months again. Then one day, it was gone.

Or the dog some months ago. It was reasonably well feed, healthy, it had appeared at our friends house in the village as if it had dropped from the sky. It liked me, it wanted to come home with us. It acted like, oh, good your here, I was sent to be your dog. Our friends suggested we take the dog. But I was unsure, and we did not take the dog. Several weeks later I noticed the dog was gone, as if it had been snatched back up into the sky.

Often times, we are able to set aside our pre-conceived ideas and avail ourselves of the opportunities that present themselves to us. Other times, we end up missing out due to some small confusion between what is wanted and what is needed. The truck for instance was an ugly yellow color. The dog in Xaibe though a local dog, a mutt, the kind I wanted, did not have yellow eyes which I think are cool.

Several weeks later I happened to witness a robbery on the street in front of my house and very much wished I had taken the dog that had been offered.

In such cases of missed opportunity, usually, opportunity comes again after a time during which I can reflect on which manner of foolishness caused me to miss it the last time.

Usually second chances carry a little smirk, a circumstance that almost challenges me to pass it up a second time.

Like the car, not butane, not a truck, but, it should get good mileage. And it was cheaper, though not in as good of condition.

Or the dog that arrived here this afternoon. He is not a local mutt dog. I wanted one of them because they are healthier, and resistant to all the local dog diseases. That's the little smirk. I think this dog is from some sort of breed of dogs. I am thinking maybe something like a bloodhound. Bloodhounds have always struck me as rather unhappy looking dogs. He has that look. Hounded, hound, I think the dog is some kind of hound. Too many stones thrown and dodged, too many not dodged in time.

In Central America, dogs lead a dog's life. The couple that brought him to us, rescued him from off the street this afternoon. They took him to a vet, got him de-wormed, de-fleaed and de-ticked, and the vet gave them some pills for bacterial dermatitis. I'm told it's not mange. I suspect it is secondary infections of flea bites. Everything health related is worse for this dog, because basically, he was starving to death. They knew we were looking for a dog, and brought him to us in case we wanted him, if we didn't, they would find someone else.

Earlier in the day as I lay in bed thinking I should wander down the street where I know of a batch of puppies, the thought came to me that I should let the right dog come to me. I chalked it up to my general lack of ambition in this heat and forgot about it. I remembered just as I was about to say no to the second dog that providence had sent my way.

The dog has been starving for so long that there is very little muscle left on his bones. His condition and probable history do not give much cause for optimism. But he will have water, food, and people around him. So, there is a chance. We will see what we can do.

Care for animals in such condition is not straight forward. If anyone has experience with such things, I am very open to hear suggestions.

The dog drinks a lot of water, it could have been dehydrated, or it could have some problem that causes it to drink a lot. I have seen twice now the dog drink half a 5 gallon bucket of water. We have no intention of limiting water in anyway and keep the bucket topped up.

I have boiled a small piece of garlic, a half-cup of rice, a plant called chaya which has vitamins, to this I added one egg raw and the shell of the egg mashed up, two ladles of pork lard, a teaspoon of brown sugar, a dash of turmeric which is poisonous to worms. I add several spoonfuls of this soup to a small fist full of dried dog food we give every couple of hours. Garlic is controversial apparently. I am in the pro-garlic camp.

The dog has eaten, drunk, urinated, defecated and explored the yard. But mostly the dog sleeps as if it is exhausted.

Tentatively we have named the dog Enlil.

There are a lot of dogs in this condition here. But this one matters now. I hope things go well for him.