Little did I dream when I started to write these reflections for my church that we would continue to be at home and watching services on Facebook five months later!! My minister, Dennis Coy, and church secretary Elizabeth Korach, suggested that we alternate every other week and include devotionals from my book on Sita Paw Prints on my Soul: Lessons of a Service Dog. The next devotional will be a new one! Some of you have the book and others do not. It is the story of our life together and all the wonderful lessons this gentle and sweet soul has taught me! Here is the Introduction and First Devotional I hope you enjoy it!
Excerpt from Jane’s Book of Devotionals,
Paw Prints on My Soul: Lessons of A Service Dog
(A note from the CUCC Secretary, Elizabeth: Jane has been graciously offering many beautifully written reflections each week during this pandemic to raise our spirits and help us through this complicated and emotional time. Because this season of COVID-19 has lasted so much longer than anyone expected, we asked Jane if we could offer her a break from her weekly original articles to share with you excerpts from one of her books, which is a set of devotionals about her wonderful companion, and a friend to all of us, her service dog Sita. When Jane takes a week off from offering Jane’s Reflections, I will include here a portion of the book. The first devotional is here preceded by the introduction and forward.)
Introduction by Laurie Lazarro Knowlton – Author
JANE BEFORE SITA
Elementary school can be brutal for children with differences. In the 50-60’s there wasn’t the social awareness or anti-bullying campaigns. Children were left to defend themselves from cruel peers and unsympathetic adults.
When Jane Biehl entered school in 1950, she had difficulty hearing the teacher. After several months and being physically punished for not listening, it was discovered she had a hearing loss. She wore a huge body hearing aid with a little pouch attached to her undershirt and a cord to her ear. Try hard as she might, Jane didn’t fit the norm and the children were unkind or ignored her. Jane went through seven years of speech therapy to perfect her speech, which had a slight accent and mispronunciation of certain letters. Already isolated from the other children, Jane mentioned on several occasions that her only friend during school was her speech therapist.
In spite of all of her difficulties, Jane’s tenacious spirit got her through school and she attended college. She shared the effects of fatigue from constantly struggling to hear and lip-read. She expressed what it was like to be so exhausted she often went home from school, work, or social outings and collapsed into bed.
Jane worked against the odds and achieved a degree in Library Sciences. When she applied for a job as a librarian, Jane was asked, “How can you possibly be a children’s librarian with your hearing loss?” At that time there wasn’t an American with Disabilities Act to protect Jane from someone asking her that question. Jane knew she had the skills and the desire to be a good librarian and she didn’t give up.
Jane’s enduring spirit and desire to achieve led to her being a librarian, a college professor, a counselor, a writer. But in spite of all of these accomplishments, Jane’s vulnerability and frustrations due to her hearing loss began to mount and fear began to rule her life. After several instances of being startled by maintenance personnel, family members entering her home, water flooding her home from sinks, and then a deaf friend being brutally beaten in his own home, Jane knew she desperately needed help. Although she had often thought she couldn’t afford to get a trained dog, and that other people needed the skills of a hearing ear dog more than she did, God had a bigger plan for Jane.
It was then that Jane spoke with a friend who suggested that Jane look into Circletail’s hearing ear dogs. The rest unfolds in the heartwarming story of Sita and Jane.
SITA BEFORE JANE
Sita’s early history is sketchy at best. She was found wandering and alone on the streets of Springfield. The shelter estimated her age at 2 years old. This particular shelter was a kill shelter
where dogs, and cats would be put down after several days if someone didn’t claim or adopt the animals.
Every time a person came into the shelter, Sita watched them choose another dog. Sita was shy and afraid of the strangers. Finally, just before her demise, Sita was rescued by a volunteer from Circletail.
Circletail is a no kill shelter. Each dog is given an evaluation to see if they have the right temperament to be a service dog. Of the dogs rescued, only one in one hundred make the cut. The 99 that don’t have what it takes to be a service dog are adopted out to families who are lucky to get a dog that has had good basic training.
Sita was adopted by Circletail with the hopes of her becoming a service dog. She was cleaned up and evaluated. At first, the instructors at Circletail were skeptical because of Sita’s timid nature, but one of the trainers saw potential in her. Sita’s initial training was in jail with a prisoner, called her handler. When her handler had to return Sita to Circletail, he wrote a note to Sita’s future partner.
“I received this good-looking yellowish sandy blond dog with excitement…My mission with her, in the short time I was to have her, was to teach her to become a better dog.
In an unexpected surprise, she taught me to become a better person. With a cold private heart, she taught me to open my arms and receive her joyful kisses and embrace her love of life…
I know! It just seems backwards.
If you receive this bright-eyed beauty, I pray she will teach you too as well.” -A Humbled Trainer.
Included in his moving letter was a beautiful picture of an adorable bright-eyed puppy standing tall and proud. Jane later read this letter about Sita on the Circletail website. Jane had no way of knowing that it was God’s plan to pair them together.
From the prison, Sita went into a foster home where she continued her training to become a hearing ear dog. Many months passed and Sita grew from a pink nosed puppy to a full grown, well- trained service dog.
The day Jane came to Circletail for her first experience with a service dog, Jane was paired with Sita. As they walked the course together, Sita showed Jane how helpful she could be by alerting Jane to sounds, picking up fallen items, and warning Jane about people coming up behind them. Jane told the director of Circletail, Marlys, that she had become very attached to Sita and that it would be difficult to continue working with Sita because she had already fallen in love. Little did Jane and Sita know that while they worked together that day they were being watched to see if they would bond. This book is the story of their journey together.
DEVOTIONAL ONE
HELP! FEAR IS TAKING OVER MY LIFE
“Do not be afraid, for I am with you.” Genesis 26: 24
The Word tells us not to be afraid, but fear was taking over my life. I was born with a severe hearing loss. Like hearing people, there are certain times that fear is healthy and a subconscious warning. People with all five senses are better able to assess their environment and make safe decisions accordingly.
But, as a hard- of- hearing person, I couldn’t hear the footsteps of someone following too close, or housekeeping entering my motel room. When a captioned television announcement warned of a severe storm approaching, I’d get anxious because I couldn’t hear tornado warning sirens.
Then of course there were the everyday things that worried me. Did I leave the water running in the sink? Not being able to hear the water running can leave you with a nightmarish mess. As a result, I’d become obsessive-compulsive checking and rechecking all the faucets, the washer, the dryer, and the toilet to make sure that nothing was running to the point of overflowing.
Living alone, I’d experienced all types of fear and hated it. If only I could hear normally, this would never happen. I was reminded daily that I was vulnerable, and fear began to dictate my life.
It took an alarming event for me to take action. I belonged to a support group for the hard- of- hearing for over 30 years. I had a friend experience a traumatic event. He was in his home and did not have his hearing aids in. He never heard a thug enter his home. He was severely beaten and robbed.
When I saw this friend’s bruised and battered face, I felt terrible for him. But more than that, I knew I had to do something to protect myself. I prayed to God asking him what to do, then I trusted he had a plan.
The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27: 1
Dear God,
I know you’ve told us not to be afraid…that you are always with us. afraid. Please help me to know and trust this. I pray for your comfort at all times. Amen
From the CUCC: THANK YOU, Jane, for allowing us to share and enjoy this beautiful work