Jackie and the Skunks

Story

When I was a kid, I had a dog named Jackie. Jackie was a little dog who looked quite funny. She had short legs, a short tail, and really big ears. Jackie was a really friendly dog, but she wasn’t very smart.

After I’d had Jackie for a while, we moved to a new house. Our house was at the edge of a forest, so there were many wild animals around. Jackie often liked to go outside, run around, bark, and do the sorts of things that dogs do.

One day, we were about to let Jackie back into the house when we smelled an awful smell. Jackie had been sprayed by a skunk! Of course, Jackie couldn’t be in the house smelling like that, so my mom put her in the basement until she could decide what to do. My mom did some research and concluded that the best way to remove skunk spray is a tomato juice-and-vinegar bath. So, she called my dad and asked him to bring tomato juice and vinegar when he came home from work.

Jackie didn’t like the bath she got, and she didn’t like staying in the basement. But, after her bath, she didn’t smell so bad, and she could come into the house again.

So, did Jackie learn to avoid skunks after that? No. After a while, she got sprayed again by a skunk. Again she had to stay in the basement. Again, she had to have a tomato juice-and-vinegar bath. But she still didn’t learn. Five times Jackie got sprayed. Five times she had to stay in the basement. Five times she had tomato juice-and-vinegar baths.

Shortly after the fifth time, my family moved to a different house. If we’d stayed, who knows how many times she would have gotten sprayed by a skunk.

Application

Jackie wasn’t very smart. She didn’t learn from her experiences. But what about you? There are many ways you can learn. Your parents and teachers tell you many important things that you should learn. The Bible also tells us many important things. But some people don’t learn from others. They just make all the mistakes themselves.

Next time someone tells you something, think about Jackie and the skunks. And learn from others, instead of being like Jackie.

Scripture

Proverbs 24:16: “For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.”