Are You Rolling in Something Gross?

The scent was intoxicating.

She couldn't get enough of it and was certain the others would be equally thrilled--jealous, even--when she pranced by, leaving the tantalizing aroma in her wake. She'd never done anything like this before, but the thrill was too great to pass by.

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So she lay down on it and rolled. Over and over, feeling the thing ooze beneath her back, delighting in the knowledge that at this moment, she was making the aroma hers. It would be her identity, her calling card, and those in the house would be amazed.

My clean little Maltese had discovered a squished earthworm in the grass and for the first time in her life, she had to have it. Had to roll on it, had to make it part of her. We pulled her off it eventually and wiped the brown stains from her snowy hair.

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We laughed at her, the way she pranced and looked longingly back at the squashed mess in the yard as though leaving a treasure. Didn't she know how gross it was? She'd just had a bath, and now the dusky scent of earthworm overpowered Doggy Groomer cologne. It was obvious to everyone but her how disgusting her treasure was, yet she walked with a proud strut as though modeling a silk collar.

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Know anyone who does the same thing?

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They cover themselves in worldly baubles, ooze materialistic pride, and wear seduction like cologne. They strut their stuff, arrogance swirling around them like a silk cloth, and challenge the rest of us: "Aren't I wonderful? Don't you wish you were me?"

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And those of us who've inhaled the scent of Mercy, who've basked in the presence of the Holy One, who've worshipped at the feet of True Beauty, wrinkle our noses. The smell is nauseating, the brown stains unattractive. What are they so proud of?

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What the world calls desirable, God calls rubbish. What the world calls wise, God calls foolish. The pride we slather ourselves in, God calls filthy rags.

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Next time you see a dog rolling in a decaying mess, think about this: As gross as that looks, what are you covering yourself with that reeks to High Heaven?

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