Law of Freedom

Freedom, what does it mean? If you asked a hundred people that question you would likely get as many answers. If my Mastiff, Zena, could answer the question, I think I know what her answer would be, and her opinion would differ widely from mine.

When Zena arrived here a couple months ago as a small puppy, I immediately fell in love with her and began to plan how I could provide her with a happy and safe life. I live far out in the country but my front yard does connect with a local road. Though it is not frequently traveled, it connects two highways and the occasional dump truck or the like will take it as a short cut. When they do, they are usually in a hurry and fly down the road with little thought of anything that might get in their way. We also have large carnivorous creatures living in the woods that would find a dog to be a nice snack. Taking these things into consideration I began to look at my options. I wanted to contain Zena within a safe radius of my home while still providing her with the maximum amount of freedom. I settled upon an electric wireless system. Zena wears a collar which beeps to warn her when she is getting too close to the boundary. If she ignores the beeps and continues on, she gets a correction which increases in intensity as she crosses the line. I spent hours training her to respond to the beeps and how to avoid correction.

Zena is, I believe, a very happy dog. But like most humans she longs for things that are outside of her reach. Instead of focusing on what she can have, she goes to the edge of her perimeter and zooms in on something beyond it. The longer she beholds it the greater her desire to have it...until it consumes her. The warning beeps will sound and she will edge forward until the first correction stops her. Then she will whine and cry, not from pain but from frustration. It makes her angry that she must stop; she feels deprived. She is certain she can never be truly happy so long as she is kept from the object of her desire.


One day I returned home to find Zena in the yard with my neighbor. The neighbor was holding her by the collar. I quickly went over to find out what had happened. The neighbor related that the battery must be dead in Zena's collar, for she had wandered out into the middle of the road and decided it would be a nice place to lie down. Had it not been for the neighbor caring enough to watch and protect Zena until I returned home, that day may not have ended happily. Zena had gained the freedom she desired, but she didn't know how much danger she was in. What Zena doesn't realize is that the wireless containment system, which she despises, actually provides her with freedom. It allows her the ability to roam the yard freely and safely.

This experience has made me consider my attitude in relation to the boundaries God has set for my life. Are they there to protect me and give me freedom or to restrict my happiness? Should I be living as close to the edge as I can, constantly focused on what others are doing, or what they have instead of what I have been provided? I believe God loves me and knows far better than I do what dangers lie in the shadows. I choose to obey His Law of Liberty and live freely within the protection He provides.

Bonnie Morsette ~ 7/2/2009