This past weekend my friend and her family came to visit us from San Diego. I knew her kids were scared of dogs so I was apprehensive about how the visit would go. My dog Sophie loves kids especially little boys and loves to jump and play. My worries however were unfounded, the kids and Sophie became best buddies and we had a wonderful visit. This is Umaan's and Dhanvi's story told through their art.
The first thing I did when the kids arrived was to distract them with an activity. With Sophie on a leash but still in the room I gave the kids a box of crayons and some paper to keep them occupied. Doing something they were familiar with and enjoyed doing i.e. drawing made them feel comfortable and distracted them from the the dog in the room. After some time we let them sit up on at a table while we let Sophie off leash. We gave them control over the situation by having them throw the ball for Sophie and have her perform certain commands or tricks. Pretty soon they were out in the yard with Sophie having a wonderful time.
The day before they left the boys commissioned some art work for our fridge. I was so touched by their portrayals of Sophie. The 6 yr old (who signs his work Umaan #4) drew a portrait of Sophie with a big grin and Dhanvi, the 3 year old created a very colorful pink and blue Sophie (who happens to be a black/tan cocker). They also drew a portrait of our family, positioning Sophie in the middle. What is interesting is that Sophie usually sits or sleeps between my husband and me. This shows they understand the importance of Sophie in our lives.
Just like Durer represented animals with naturalistic detail characteristic of Northern Europe, the kids in their own innocence and ability captured subtle details of Sophie's personality and appearance. The happiness, emotion and use of vivid colors in their art work tells me that they overcame their fear of dogs and really bonded with Sophie. They came to see her as a buddy not a threat. Their art clearly communicates it.
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