The Curious Puppy: A Nice Story About Self-reflection
The story of the curious puppy is about self-reflection. It is set in a wooded place in the distance …
There, in the depths of the forest, was an abandoned house. A house that no one has lived in for many years. The puppy noticed the house but was afraid to approach it. He stayed away at first for fear of finding something he wouldn’t like. But curiosity drove him back here. The next day he returned and walked a little closer to the house, but still didn’t dare go inside. The sun was high in the sky and the heat was unbearable. The puppy needed a place to hide from the hot rays. After some hesitation, he decided to enter the house. The place was completely deserted. “Hello!”, called the dog, but no one answered him. A staircase led up to a corner and he decided to look at it. There seemed to be no one there and he began, very carefully, to climb the stairs.
He wasn’t prepared for what to expect.
“We earn our lives with what we receive, but we live with what we give.”
John Maxwell
An unexpected encounter
When the puppy climbed the stairs, he found himself in a large living room. To his surprise, he found numerous puppies, just like him! And everyone seemed to be waiting for him.
The curious puppy was so happy. The other dogs seemed very friendly. That gave him confidence to raise his little paw and greet her. The little dog barked nicely and the others did the same. “What a beautiful place!” Thought the puppy, “I’ll come back whenever I can!”
The days passed and another dog came to this apparently abandoned house. This one was different, he was downright afraid. When he saw the house, he decided not to go near it. He was too scared and stayed away from it.
The same place, a different encounter
The second dog saw that there were many more beautiful places in the area – a clearing here, a small cave there. He decided to go back, always staying away from the abandoned house. But one day there was torrential rain and he had no choice: he had to go into the house.
Once inside, he looked around carefully. In the background he could see the stairs, but he wasn’t going towards them. Time passed and he got cold. He thought that if he went to the second floor it might be a little warmer, so he gathered his courage and went upstairs.
He then stood in the same large room as his predecessor. He sniffed around and doubts grew in him as to whether this place was actually uninhabited. Then he saw the other dogs. He immediately got ready to attack and the other dogs did the same. He barked aggressively and so did the others! The dog left the house as fast as he could, telling himself that he would never return. “What a terrible place!” He thought.
He was running so fast that he couldn’t see an old sign that had fallen on the floor. The sign read “House of Mirrors”. Neither the first nor the second puppy had realized that they had only seen reflections of themselves.
The moral of the story: self-reflection
The story of the curious puppy reveals a truth that we often overlook. What we see in others is basically a reflection of ourselves. We basically receive from others what we give them. Those who rely on the world will be welcomed in a friendly manner. And those who act aggressively also receive aggression in exchange. History tries to teach us the importance of self-reflection.
Man is by nature sociable. We were born to live in groups ; it is part of our biological and cultural identity. We may be selfish, but everyone is part of a group. This is an essential point of reference, it functions as a “cabinet of mirrors”. What we see in our fellow human beings has a lot to do with what we see in ourselves – just like in the story of the curious puppy.
When we have trouble with the world, we should question ourselves, not the world. Is it the world’s to blame? Or are we the ones who don’t approach them positively? The story of the curious puppy makes us wonder if it’s time for some self-reflection.
