| You want dumb as a brick? You want too dense | | | | out. They huddle together, as if to give the wolf |
| to get out of their own way? Get yourself some | | | | an easier, more cohesive target. |
| sheep. | | | | And if sheep fall into moving water, they drown. |
| Quarry rocks have higher IQs than sheep. In any | | | | Their coats, heavy to begin with, absorb water |
| cavalcade of dumb things, sheep always lead the | | | | rapidly, adding poundage by the second, and |
| parade. | | | | sheep can't swim. Here's where we have to give |
| Animal lovers argue about animal intelligence. Pigs, | | | | sheep a little credit. Sheep fear moving water and |
| they say, are really intelligent. Horses, too. Dog | | | | won't drink from a lake or stream unless the |
| lovers discuss the intelligence of various | | | | water is still. That's probably more instinct than |
| breeds-with their dog in the top group, of course. | | | | common sense, but it's something. |
| But nobody argues about the intelligence of sheep. | | | | All in all, sheep are pretty pitiful. |
| Let's face it. There's dumb. There's dumber. Then | | | | So why do we insist on imitating them? Follow the |
| there are sheep. | | | | crowd, even into disaster? Have to be told to do |
| Sheep spend their days munching grass. Hour | | | | what's good for us? Allow predators to eat us for |
| after hour, munching grass. It sounds pleasantly | | | | lunch because we won't fight back? Even sheep |
| pastoral, but this constant munching creates | | | | have sense enough not to barge into situations |
| problems. | | | | that will overwhelm them. |
| Wandering from grass clump to grass clump, | | | | We imitate sheep because sheepness is a part of |
| sheep chew away without looking up. Focused | | | | what we are, a part we have to overcome. |
| only on the next green clump-and with severely | | | | Let me drop a big name here: In the Bible, Jesus |
| limited vision to start with-they may not notice | | | | says we're all like sheep and gives a rundown of |
| the rest of the herd hanging a left just when | | | | what that means. It's not a pretty picture. We |
| they've spotted a juicy morsel to the right-and | | | | might want to jump to our defense, except he |
| another, and another, and so on. Then they're | | | | isn't insulting us, just pointing out a universal, |
| lost, wandering around in a daze, bleating. But still | | | | life-limiting propensity we all need to overcome. |
| grazing. | | | | We overcome our sheeply tendencies by |
| Prompt rescue is necessary. Sheep can't digest all | | | | discovering the gifts and talents that make us |
| their grazing until they lie down. But sheep don't | | | | unique, then stretching to maximize all that |
| have sense enough to lie down, even when their | | | | potential. We think rather than feel our way |
| aching, expanding girth signals impending doom. | | | | through life-something sheep could never do. We |
| You have to make them lie down for their own | | | | take responsibility for ourselves-another sheep |
| good. | | | | impossibility. And we don't bleat all the time. |
| Then we have their inherent "follower" nature. | | | | Recognizing our sheepness problem can show us |
| Sheep life is one long game of follow-the-leader. | | | | the way to solve it. If we choose to. Do we want |
| The lead sheep heads over a cliff? No problem. | | | | to drift from one unnecessary difficulty to |
| The whole herd follows without a bleat-if, that is, | | | | another, hoping somebody will rescue us from |
| it happens during a moment when they're paying | | | | ourselves, or are we willing to do the heavy lifting |
| attention instead of getting lost following a | | | | required to live a life of purpose and meaning? |
| grass-clump trail. | | | | One advantage we have over sheep is we get to |
| Also, sheep are helpless against predators. If a | | | | choose. |
| wolf gets in the sheep pen, sheep don't fight back. | | | | © Copyright 2007 by Bette Dowdell. All |
| They don't try to get away. They don't spread | | | | rights reserved. |