The Good Shepherd
- M. Linda Graham
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Retirement Day #2522
Tuesday May 26, 2026
Wearing pink satin jammies while dragging a bag of bird seed and a reluctant old Siamese cat with a broken tail [named, originally enough, “Blue Eyes”] – I head out back to shinny up a support pipe, sit on top of our car port, and feed the birds.
It’s 5:45a.m. in late May, and our midwestern backyard is cacophonous with the morning song of hopeful feathered bachelors. For 5yr.old me, it is heaven on earth. I’m not so sure about Blue Eyes.
Now, 63yrs. later, that bawdy morning birdsong still fills my heart with a meditative peace. I roll over in bed, unable to get back to sleep, crank the window wider and turn on my Merlin app to meet today’s visitors: Indigo Bunting, Wood Thrush, Swainson’s Thrush, Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Red-eyed Vireo, Song Sparrow, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Baltimore Oriole, Hairy Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker …..the list is long, the morning music bright in contrast to the dreary sky, and I debate the wisdom of rising so early on a busy day.
I relish this musical moment. So, I stay in the magic, knowing the rest of my day’s plans will pay for this delicious moment. Life is too short not to.
My husband and I live on a modest bluff overlooking a small wetland area on the Kalamazoo River - it’s a retirement paradise. We live here thanks to a Belgian Shepherd [Malinois] named Argo who needed space. In a way, you could say Argo “shepherded” us to this home 12yrs ago. Lucca, a joyful Dutch Shepherd, joined our little pack 3yrs later.
When 12.5yr. old Argo crossed the rainbow bridge a little over a year ago, we were devastated. I know a piece of my husband’s soul crossed that bridge with him. But the Circle Game goes round; every dog owner knows that eventually the breeze shifts, and the pack knows it’s time. Last week, 1yr. old Cap’n Jack, a long-haired German Shepherd [aka “GSD”], joined our little pack. No dog ever “replaces” a lost packmate – but each marks the family with their own, oh, you know – unique marking. Jack is clearly setting a new tone, with his lofty lope, goofy grin and winsome curiosity. 10yr. old Lucca is both smitten and annoyed – she loves bossing him around, then looks at me after they play with an exhausted “what the heck!?!”
I grew up with a black GSD named Bear- and some may think Bear to be the source behind my fondness for perk-eared shepherds. But truth be told, I think my father set the tone. No one was more of a Good Shepherd than Zachary Morgan Graham, aka “Tony” [that nickname is another story]. This makes sense, in a way, as my mom always claimed to be “just a little sheep.” Ha. HER truth is that she was much more the resilient Female Alpha Wolf; in a way, maybe dad was the Alpha Male, too. I grew up in a pack of eight, but a number of our extended family of cousins, uncles and aunts were nearby, so our pack was big. To this day, my cousin David is more brother than cousin.
I don’t believe shepherds and wolves are so far apart when one considers who they are committed to and how they serve that commitment. Wolves are intense, social animals bonded in tight-knit family units typically consisting of six to ten individuals. Within their family unit, wolves shepherd each other with Scottish-clan-like ferocity. And what is a Good Shepherd? rooted in Jesus-talk, a Good Shepherd is a selfless, attentive leader who prioritizes the well-being and growth of those they guide. They are relational, supportive, compassionate, resourceful providers, unwaveringly vigilant and the ultimate sacrificial guardians.
To be clear, shepherds are NOT wolves. Scientifically speaking, GSDs are not as closely related to wolves as older breeds such as the Shiba Inu, Akita, Husky or Malamute. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, breeders utilized various shepherding dogs to create the German, Belgian and Dutch Shepherds, intentionally weeding out wolf-like predatory instincts to develop trainable, social working partners. Their wolf-like look is a result of their work-oriented physical build, not recent wolf ancestry. But wolves shepherd their own, and shepherd dogs shepherd the humans they bond to – their chosen family. Therein lies their vigilant, compassionate, resourceful, fierce common ground.
When a Shepherd is present, whether human or canine, the space feels secure. One can sleep, eat, bathe, love, going about the day secure in the knowledge that This Place is safe, because The Shepherd is on the job.
As I lay here, listening to the rollicking birds, Lucca snuggles into my legs. I relax. A Shepherd is on my side - literally.
All is well.
I drift back to sleep.
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