The Dogs They Are

The other day, I was walking to the library. A very interesting thing happened. Someone happened to be standing around the corner and was leisurely waiting/walking. Suddenly, she barked,"Angus, Angus, come, what are you doing there, come, come, COME!"

I assumed that she was calling out to her dog, who was probably left behind, or had found a little spot to do its business. How wrong I was! Around the corner, who came running desperately to the calls was a young 3 year old boy!

This wasn't the first time I've encountered this. There are times when I'm commuting, and I hear,"Sit, sit! You sit still, don't move, just SIT!" When you hear that, you naturally assume that the person shouting was trying to discipline his/her pet, be it a dog or cat or another animal. No, it was the complete opposite. It was a little boy or girl they were asking to sit down properly in the seats of a bus or train, because they couldn't behave themselves.

It's scary to actually see the association where a mom or dad calls out to their kids in the same way as they call out to their pets! What are parents doing nowadays? Let's draw a few parallels between their beloved children and their pets. I couldn't tell the difference, could you?

The Pets
1) They feed their pets.
2) They train their pets.
3) They discipline their pets.
4) They play with their pets.
5) They call out to their pets.
6) They clean up after their pets (not all of them do!).
7) They put their pets in "hotels" to get taken care of.

The Kids
1) They feed their kids.
2) They teach their kids.
3) They discipline their kids.
4) They play with their kids.
5) They call out to their kids.
6) They clean up after their kids (not all of them do!).
7) They put their kids in day-care centres.

Here are some of the more commonly heard words used by parents to call their kids/pets.

1) Sit!

2) Stand still!

3) Sit still!
4) Come on!
5) Hurry Up!
6) Where are you? Come to mommy/daddy!
7) Why so slow?
8) Move faster!
9) Shut up!
10) You can't pee/shit there!

If you were a blind person walking along the streets or commuting on a bus or train, it is so easy to mistake a call for a pet and a call for the kids.

Perhaps it will only take someone to point it out before the fine lines between the 2 completely different creatures become seamless and blurred beyond recognition!

How completely embarassing!