It wasn’t unusual at all to hear the fire truck rumble past our house. They do that all the time since we’re just a few blocks from the fire house. But today I found it odd that the big truck stopped very quickly in front of our house. I walked toward the front door to see what might have cause such a sudden halt.

I couldn’t believe it! Our miniature Dachshund, Mac, was in the middle of the road barking his fool head off at the huge ladder truck. Someone (who shall remain nameless) had left the front gate open, and Mac had decided to let that fire truck know what he thought. Mac is all of six inches tall (and probably three times as long as he is tall), and could have easily been squashed flat without the big truck even feeling the lump in the road. But the watchful driver had considerately stopped for the little dog, and I ran toward the road hollering at Mac to get back inside. Mac ran to the sidewalk, so the truck started moving again. But as soon as it did, Mac took off after it again. Obligingly, the driver stopped again and I finally caught up with Mac. I chased him back into the yard, waved and apologized and thanked the firefighters who seemed to be amused by all of this, and with Mac safely behind bars, the fire truck was finally allowed to be on its way.

I mused over this all later. Mac went after that truck, and didn’t even care about the fact that it was so much bigger than he was. I had to admire his bravery. I may not like a lot of things about that little dog, but he has some definite qualities that I admire. Not only is he gentle with the children, and too small to knock anyone over, but he is an excellent little watchdog.

So how do you know the difference between bravery and stupidity? I suppose I don’t know. Someone has said, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” But there is something to admire about those who are willing to go out on a limb and put their neck on the line.

Thanks to good brakes on the fire truck, Mac lives to bark another day. And I am left to wonder at how I might be just a bit more willing to stand up to something that might squash me.