Afraid of dogs

For most of my life, I had been afraid of dogs. It likely started with my father's German Shorthair - an over-active hunter in need of much more exercise and training than his pen and my father allowed. As a young boy, it was my job to feed and water the dog. I would approach his pen silently and hope that he was sleeping or distracted. Then I would quickly grab the empty dishes, fill them, and wait for just the right moment to drop the new fare at the edge of his enclosure. I now know that I mistook his exuberant behavior as aggression – which reinforced my fear of interaction with him.

As I’ve grown older, I am able to see a dog’s playful exuberance as a trait that shows he wants to please and be accepted. I find that I am able to reach out and pet these dogs – because I have learned to understand them – and therefore I’m no longer afraid.

So it is with the immigrants, illegals, refugees, and minorities among us. We are afraid of them because we don’t understand their behavior. With dogs, it’s mistaken for aggression. With people we mistakenly use their appearance, their customs, their languages, to pretend we are afraid of them and as justification to discriminate against them.

People new to our country have an exuberance for work, family, education, homeownership, - American dreams we all share. Take the time to reach out to them, to understand them, to accept them - and you’ll no longer be afraid.