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Reading Questions:
A
Gift to Share |
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A Gift to Share is a
book about generosity.
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A. Moritz's Gift: Therapy Dog
Exercises
B A Gift to Share: Being with
Others
C. Generosity exercise (based on a
traditional Tibetan practice)
D. Character web (qualities from A
Gift to Share)
E. Opening to Your Gift to Share
A.
Moritz's Gift: Therapy Dog exercises
You need children to be:
Moritz, the little boy in the hospital, Barry.
You can have them switch characters.
To adapt this exercise, have
children supply other people whom they know are sick.
Could be grandparents, friends, even someone who is very
unhappy though not physically sick. Change the room and
circumstances but continue to play out the scene.
1) Imagine you are Moritz.
--What is your fur like?
--How big are you? (If you are 7 years old, it might
take 3 of you to weigh as much Moritz).
--How deep is your bark?
--What is your nose like? What can you smell?
--How big are your paws? Put your hand on the Moritz's
paw print.
Feel what it is like to walk on your four paws.
--You wag your tail a lot. What makes you wag your tail?
You have been trained to be a therapy dog:
--When you hear loud noises at a hospital, what do you
do?
--When someone hugs you too hard, what do you do?
--When there is an emergency at the hospital and doctors
run down the hall what do you do?
--When big machines that rattle loudly are pushed down
the hall very fast near you what do you do?
--When you are around someone who is afraid of you, what
do you do?
2) Little boy/Sick Person's Perspective:
--Imagine that you are the little boy in the big
hospital bed with the hard mattress that is not your bed
at home, and there are funny smells like medicine all
around you. Moritz has put his head up to yours. How big
is his head? How big is your head? How does Moritz's
nose feel touching yours? Do you expect a big dog to be
there in your room? Right next to you? What do you do?
--Now imagine that as you cry, you see Moritz gently
move away, but that he stays with you. You know that he
did not want to frighten you and that he is there for
you.
--Have you ever seen a dog that big? Or so furry, with
fur in such beautiful deep colors? How did he get here?
--When you are ready, say Moritz's name and reach out
your hand as much as you can with the tubes in it. What
does Moritz do? How do you feel when he comes back to
you?
--You are tired. You close your eyes a bit and rest.
When you open them and look over, Moritz is there beside
your bed. What do you feel?
3) Moritz's Perspective
--You and Barry go into the hospital room of the little
boy who has casts on his legs and tubes in his arms, and
bandages all around his head. See how small he is, how
he can't move very much. How does he seem to you?
-- What do you do next? What happens when you show him
that you are there by touching his hand, nuzzling his
chest, putting your nose to his nose?
--The little boy is tired and scared. You, Moritz, like
him very much. You want him to feel strong and calm and
happy. You lie down next to him to keep him company.
Even if he has a hard time in the bed, he is not alone.
You can tell he knows you are his friend. You leave him
strength and calm, even when you must go on to another
room with Barry.
B. A
Gift to Share: Being with Others
1) Remember a time when someone you know --maybe a
friend, a little brother or sister, a cousin, or someone
in your class at school, was sick at home or in the
hospital. They were scared and unhappy. Or maybe this
person was you. Imagine that you bring Moritz over to be
with him or her or you. What happens?
2) Sometimes people do not get better right away.
Sometimes they continue to be sad or this is the time
for them to be unwell. Maybe it is the time they will
die. What would Moritz think of that? How would he be
with them? How do you feel if you cannot fix things?
3) Wishing exercise:
--wish for this person who is sick or unhappy to be
happy, and not to be in pain.
--Wish for the happiness you have to go to this person,
to all people who are sad.
--You don't have to worry about running out of
happiness: it is endless, just like the warmth of the
sun after all the clouds have gone.
--Version 1: So imagine that your wish is like warm
invisible sunlight that goes freely to this person and
others. Let it touch all others whom you think of.
--You can wish this happiness for yourself too. If you
need the happiness first, then wish it for yourself
first.
--Version 2: Imagine Moritz sitting next to you, with
his warm furry body beside you. His warmth radiates from
him into you, and he is there for you, happy, present,
just there. You can feel and remember his presence even
after he leaves. You imagine that you can send this
warmth and happiness too.
C.
Generosity exercise
(based on a traditional Tibetan generosity practice):
This works well with shiny
rocks, the kind that are put in gardens.
1) Discovering the Special Rock/Wish Fulfilling Jewel
Have each child close his/her eyes and relax. Lead them
through a visualization in which they are climbing a
mountain and as they go up, they find a special cave,
just their size. They go in and have a snug place to
rest and look out over the beautiful valley. They
explore a little and they find a special hole/cranny in
the wall of the where they reach out their hand
(Have children reach out one
hand, palm up)
They discover a special object that has been there a
long long time, as if it was waiting there for them.
Learn that it is a wish fulfilling jewel: anything that
you or anyone else wants and needs will be granted to
you. Anything and everything. Wishing on this jewel:
could be a new bike for yourself, having your
grandmother be well, not having to wear your cousin's
old clothes, having a good friend at school, others have
enough to eat, people in your neighborhood stop shooting
each other
(Drop one of the rocks in each
child's hand and have them close their hand around it.
Have them keep their eyes closed for a bit).
Visualization continues: now each child makes his/her
way back down the mountain, with one hand holding the
special rock. They stumble and almost lose the special
stone/jewel 1-2 times. How do they feel about the jewel
then?
2) Self-Sharing
--Put the rock/jewel in one hand and think of all that
you can/will do with it. Feel how precious it is.
--Feel the weight of it in your hand, how it feels in
your hand with the palm open and closed. Is your hand
warm? Cold?
--Now bring the hand with the jewel in it to your other
hand. Open your palm and cup your hand so it can receive
the jewel.
--when you are ready, drop the jewel from one hand into
the other.
--How does that feel? Is it hard to do? Keep on.
Have discussion along the way
3) Sharing with Others
(Note: this is a practice, and
it will not be easy for everyone. And/or it will present
unexpected difficulties at various points. It is
important that no one sees they have failed if they
don't 'share' immediately. Gently look at and be with
what is happening).
--Find a partner. Each of you has a jewel.
Person A: You lose your jewel (have someone come along
and temporarily take the jewel as the story of the loss
is narrated --there was a flood, you lost the jewel,
etc) but you still need the jewel to do many things. How
do you feel when you have lost the jewel?
How does your hand feel, empty of the jewel? Reach it
out, empty.
Person B: You still have your jewel. You think of all
you are going to do with it. You see across from you a
person who has lost his/hers. He/she reaches out one
hand to you. You know that you can let this person have
the jewel in your hand. That this person really wants,
needs it.
--What do you feel? How do you hold your jewel?
--Now reach your hand out toward Person A's open empty
hand.
--Bring your hand with the jewel in it over the other
person's hand. Bring it closer and closer.
Variation 1: When you are ready, drop the jewel into the
Person A's hand. What do you feel? How does your hand
feel?
Variation 2: Get your hand closer and closer and closer
to Person A's hand. You almost drop it in but at the
last moment at a signal from the one doing this
exercise, you draw your hand back. This might happen
several times. Then when you are ready, the last time
you drop the jewel into their hand. What do you feel at
these different points?
Give the jewel back to Person A.
Do the whole exercise again, switching A and B roles.
--If these rock/jewels are part of the equipment, it can
be very powerful when they need to be returned. Or it
can be arranged that they are kept by those who played
in this exercise. They might write about the jewel or
use it to keep practicing, using it to introduce others
to sharing.
D.
Moritz Character web (qualities from A Gift to Share):
Draw a box with Moritz's name in it. Have lines
radiating out on different sides.
Have children supply qualities of Moritz. Such as:
Moritz:
--is born in a place with big snowy mountains
--has six brothers and sisters
--has a mother who told him he has a gift to heal people
and to make others happy
--tugs on Barry's shoelaces when he is a puppy
--peed on Barry's shoes once
--is brown and black and white
--flew very far in airplane in a kennel
--took an obedience class with lots of wild puppies
--calms down puppies and people
--is a certified Pet Therapy Dog
--loves to live with Barry
--helps Barry
E.
Opening to Your Gift to Share
1. Think about the story. Moritz's mother told him he
had a special gift to heal and help people.
--Did he discover this gift right away? Did he still run
around and have fun as a puppy?
--Did Moritz stay with his mother? Why not? Even when he
was not with his mother any more, what did he have from
her?
--He met Barry and he agreed to go on a big adventure.
How did this help him with his gift?
--What kinds of schools did Moritz go to?
--How did Moritz feel about what he could do?
2. Imagine that you are with Moritz and Moritz's
mother.
--They are sitting with you in a beautiful place, or
maybe they have come to your room. You choose.
--They are sitting on each side of you.
--Moritz tells you that he knows you have a gift of your
own. He knows this because he can feel it. Do you think
this is true?
--You may not know what your gift is yet. How can you
find it? Close your eyes and feel Moritz's furry body
next to yours. You put your hand on his big head and
feel his calm. How he helps you just by being there, in
the same place. Or if he isn't there, he helps you just
because you know that he is using his gift. He knows you
can use yours too.
--See things you like to do, things you care about. Do
you like to sing? Do you like to paint? Do you like to
run really fast? Do you like to read? To perform in
plays? To help people? Do you like to laugh, tell jokes?
What if doing what you like could be a part of your
gift?
--Remember that Moritz grew from a small(ish) puppy into
a very big dog. You have to grow too. How could your
growing be part of the gift you have?
--Moritz had Barry to take him to puppy obedience school
and to Therapy Dog School. Do you have people who help
you to learn? Do you have schools and books and ways to
learn what you need, what you like to do? If you don't
know how to learn about your gift, can you think of who
can help you? How you can help yourself? Who can you
talk to about this?
--Even if you feel as if you do not have ways right now
to train your gift, you can keep believing in yourself.
Feel Moritz beside you again. Read his story over.
Remeber his story. Moritz found his way. He did not give
up. He helped that little boy who could not get out of
that hospital bed.
--You can tell yourself, "I have a gift to share. I want
to discover what it is. I will learn how to make this
gift open up for myself and others."
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TOP OF PAGE |
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Wonderful photos of Moriz and the
places Barry and he have visited. |
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Moritz and Barry often receive
letters from readers, patients and teachers who have
been affected by Nose to Nose and pet therapy.
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