The headline writers are going to have a field day with this one. Here are just a few I've seen so far: "Teddy bear all shook up by hound dog" "Elvis' teddy bear bites the big one" "Too much to bear."
Did you ever wonder what happened to the teddy bear you once owned as a child? Well, keep it in mind as you consider this tragic teddy tale: Mabel, a teddy bear once owned by Elvis Presley was unfortunately torn apart by a guard dog who was supposed to protect it. That dog is out of a job. Would YOU hire that dog to guard something of yours? I've noticed one site already considering publishing info. about how to kill a dog. Here's a quote from an article:
"Barney has been a model guard dog for more than six years. I still can't believe what happened," security guard Greg West was quoted as saying after the attack on Tuesday night. "Either there was a rogue scent of some kind on Mabel, which switched on Barney's deepest instincts, or it could have been jealousy. I was just stroking Mabel and saying what a nice bear she was."
Sad? Yes, but consider something. That teddy bear did its job. Its job was to make Elvis happy, and it has done that. It also made other people happy, including (I hope) Somerset aristocrat Sir Benjamin Slade, who bought the bear at an auction. I'd like to think that he got some kind of satisfaction by owning the bear, even if it was only for a short time. (He may have lost some money in the -forgive me- bear market, but aren't teddy bears supposed to be worth more than money?)
It's the same with your old teddy and mine. It's the same with all the wonderful things from childhood. They did their jobs. We love them and in many cases we miss them, but whether we have them or not, we're thankful they were there, and we still have the good feelings that we had when they were there. That's part of what's good about being a grown-up. We have a greater capacity to make ourselves feel good all by ourselves.
Who would have known a teddy could force me into such profound musings. . .:) As Huey Lewis said, "that's the power of love. . ."
Since this is a news item, it's possible these links will be obsolete quickly, but for now, here's a link to the story. If it doesn't work, try searching for it using Google News in the links section to the right.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060803/od_afp/afplifestylebritain_060803170941
