My parents have a 14-year old dog they inherited from my sister a few years back. Because of a new carpet put in downstairs a couple of years ago, the dog was forbidden from going downstairs. She kept the rules obediently.
While on home assignment in the U.S. in Maryland, however, I've taken it upon myself to retrain this old dog. One evening last year in fear of a thunderstorm when no one else was in the house, she crept downstairs to hop into my lap so she wouldn't be all alone during the terrible storm. There was no retribution for this little infraction. Another week some months later, while I was house-sitting when my folks were away, the dog similarly snuck downstairs to have someone to hang out with. Now, whenever my folks head out the door, as soon as they prepare to head toward the garage the old dog moves to the top of the stairs and cranes its neck around to make sure the coast is clear before sneaking surreptitiously down the steps. She now knows only to make her move as they are leaving or already left (although she still needs to work on the angle of sneaking back UP the stairs unnoticed when her owners return).
I didn't think it would be possible to impart such scheming cunning and trickery to such an old animal in such a short time while on home assignment. Thank you for your giving to the Great Commission Fund, which has enabled me to corrupt this poor creature while living on home assignment allowance in the U.S. Oh, and my parents know and laugh with me about the dog's duplicious behavior.
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