Jul 3, 2018 By Dewitt Clinton 4 min read

Maggie comes to within two inches of the chicken wire fence and scrutinizes the geese. She stands unmoving, but alert, and although I cannot hear a word, I can visualize the mechanisms of her mind spinning in high gear as she studies the approaching fowl. I would really love to know what plans she is hatching. The geese, always vigilant, approach the fence to investigate this new threat to their territorial integrity; Sir Galahad, the gallant gander, leading his gaggle of three chattering geese. Four geese can make an unbelievable amount of noise enough to frighten the fainthearted-but Maggie stands her ground and through the fence the confrontation begins.

I am a neutral bystander to this confrontation. Well, perhaps not exactly neutral, because I am caretaker for both the geese and the dog, and must insure that no blood is shed on either side of the fence. As a bystander, however, I quietly contemplate the rationale of each opposing side. For an instant, my mind wanders and instead of feathers and fur, I visualize President Trump and Kim Jung Un peering at each other through the fence. Soon the vision of international players dissipates and I return to the reality of a summit between my four Embden geese and Maggie, my Boston terrier.

Geese are amazingly curious. They will nibble or peck on anything that stands out from its surroundings: a knot in the wall, the edge of their feeder, or a button on my shirt. So, when Maggie approaches the fence, goose curiosity takes over and they begin pecking through the fence at her nose. Not knowing what they are thinking, I interpret their attempts to peck Maggie’s nose as curiosity. However, the gander and his geese may be defending the integrity of their domain and the attempted nose pecking might be a warning to the nose’s owner.

Whatever their motivation, Maggie construes such gestures as hostile maneuvers and attempts to bite any goose bill that comes close, at which time I must don my chief negotiator hat and step in to prevent serious injury. Even though Maggie comes out on top each time she engages in such a kerfuffle, when she comes with me into the goose pen, she knows she is on enemy turf and remains at a respectable distance from the geese. Though not as well organized or publicized as the summit between Trump and the North Koreans, Maggie and the geese will somehow arrive at a truce; granted, most likely an uneasy one. My ability to communicate with geese and dogs is limited, but my judgment is that the relatively innocent motivations of these disputants will contribute to reasonably productive cooperation between them.

Summits truly succeed only when motivations are appropriate. The rooster that runs free on our property provides a negative proof of this reality. Whenever he gets within striking distance, his sinister character bubbles to the surface and he attacks Maggie at full gallop.

When he got sassy with me, he and I held a summit in which I negotiated a truce by threatening to apply a stainless steel food bowl to the side of his head, at which time self-preservation became an overriding incentive in his relationship with me. Maggie, however, still has serious doubts about his intentions toward her.

Our barnyard observations can be applied to Trump’s recent summit. What President Trump’s detractors fail to understand is that sanctions and bullying have a purpose much like my use of the stainless steel feeding dish. Roosters and dictators sometimes need an attitude adjustment. The Bible provides some useful information about this matter: 1Corinthians 2:11,

“For what man knows the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?” In other words, only this dictator knows what is in his own mind, so, given the past dishonesty of the North Koreans, the art of this deal is all about attempting to create useful motivations where they have not previously existed. “My nuclear button is larger than yours,” tends to bring even the most sinister players to the negotiation table because self-preservation is a game changing motivation. Even the mafia knows the value of “an offer you can’t refuse.”

DeWitt Clinton is a resident of Dunbar.