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Finding Gobi

December 20, 2020 / 4 Comments

At the start of Day Two, Dion looked down at a flicker of movement by his feet.  There sat a small, fuzzy brown dog looking up at him expectantly. Dion had no idea who she was or where she’d come from.

Dion is an ultra marathoner, and in March of 2016 he was in the Gobi Desert in China to compete in the 155-mile, 6-day, 7-stage Four Deserts Gobi race.  He and the dog were in the middle of nowhere.

Dion would have thought little of it except that the dog took off when he did and kept pace with him the entire day; she never left his side.  That night in camp, when she looked at him imploringly, he shared with her a little of his precious store of water and some special high-calorie food.  On Day Three their lives changed forever.

Coming to a wide, strong-running river, Dion plunged in and across.  This accomplished, he looked around for the little dog.  She was nowhere to be seen.  Turning back from whence he’d come, he spotted her on the far shore; she would be unable to cross on her own.  And then what would become of her?  She had her eyes fixed on him.

Dion had a decision to make.  Should he continue on, leaving the dog to a quite likely unfortunate fate, or go back – almost certainly foregoing his chance at a win, and at the very least prolonging the event that would already call out of him all he had to give?

He didn’t hesitate for long.  He threw himself back into the water, returned for the tiny bundle, then crossed back over for the third time, pup in arms.  He said, in a recent interview with a Louisiana TV station, “It’s a heart-warming and inspiring story that came from one act of kindness – namely, helping Gobi across the river because she couldn’t get across on her own.  That one act truly altered both of our lives, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”  Dion named Gobi at that time and became her protector, benefactor, and provider.  He promised her he’d take her home to Scotland with him.

Gobi ran next to Dion for 77 of the 155 miles.

When it was not safe for her to run – for example, when temperatures got up to 125 degrees Fahrenheit (Ummmm … Is it safe for humans to be running in that temperature?!) – Dion put her in a chase vehicle.  And they crossed the finish line together.  Someone placed medals around each of their necks.  Both are smiling widely.

This was only the start of the story, however.  Race over, Dion left Gobi in the care of race organizers in a Chinese city of 3,000,000 people.  He returned to Scotland to make application and arrangements for Gobi to leave China and enter Scotland.

There Gobi was allowed to escape.  Now she was loose and on her own in a city not known for its concern for animals.  But Dion went to work.  He returned immediately to China to find her.  A promise is a promise, after all.  In an amazing effort involving posters, flyers, phone calls, TV and radio stations, long car rides, door-to-door visits, and the mobilization of a small group of volunteers, Gobi was finally located and she and Dion reunited.  She had a large gash on her head and was limping badly.

In time, after hip surgery and a four-month quarantine period, Gobi finally arrived in Scotland where she lives today with Dion, his wife, and a cat who has her own astounding story (and book!).  That is, she’s there between frequent trips all over the world for appearances to various groups and fund-raising efforts for animal causes.

And it all started with one act of compassion shown by one of God’s creatures for another.  We can all be compassionate, caring, other-centered.  And should be.  God asks this of us.  About the animals He said, “For every beast of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.  I know every bird of the mountains, and everything that moves in the field is Mine” (Psalm 50:10, 11).  Because He cares, we should care; we should do what we can.

And check out Finding Gobi: A Little Dog With a Very Big Heart by Dion Leonard.  You won’t be sorry and that’s a promise!

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