The last time we spoke I started instituting the command “No Easy” to slow Sagan down to a better pace. That has worked very well except when it doesn’t. Sometimes Sagan feels like a thoroughbred horse poised to dash out of the shoot. We all have days when we feel like dancing and others when the bed seems the best choice. Sagan rarely feels like bed is best. I feel sad when he is vibrating in his harness wanting to go faster and I just can’t meet him there.
We have had some beautiful walks over the last weeks and I absolutely love it when we are in a nice rhythm together. I am finding that that happens when I know exactly where I am and exactly what the obstacles are. Unfortunately, real life does not work that way. Stu is allowing us to figure out our way more and more. I am going out alone on routes I know. This is the way it should be but sometimes I just hate feeling that every step could be a catastrophe.
The picture above is a selfie shot of Mel, Stu and Sagan on the couch.
This past weekend was the Doylestown Arts Festival and lots of people attend. I thought it would be a good idea for me to harness up the boy to see what happens. Overall, Sagan worked well according to what Stu observed. He took me around obstacles and people just as he is supposed to do. There were some mishaps with overhangs but nobody got hurt. There were a lot of people with dogs which for the most part were not a problem. There was one little dog that was aggressive and Sagan could not focus on his work. I do not blame him for that at all. Those aggressive dogs do not understand the concept of “survival of the friendliest.” My anxiety was ramping up to boiling by then, so all I wanted was to sit down and have a beer. We found our way to a vegan food booth and a beer truck and I gathered myself back to myself, sort of. I know that my anxiety transfers to Sagan so I try to transmute my anxiety to calmness. Well, I understand the concept of transmutation but I am not always great at it. I hope to be an enlightened human being but so far, I am just ordinary.
Once we had had a bite to eat and a drink, it was time to gird my loins and head home. Sagan was very stimulated by all the strangeness and he was determined to go fast. By then my ability to be calm, cool, and collected was long gone. I lost my ability to think straight and my drama queen was emerging. I am normally very self contained outwardly while my insides are in turmoil. I lost my ability to give solid, clear commands and frustration and anxiety became overpowering. I started giving Sagan commands that he could not understand and I started to cry and say bad words. So, here I am with Stu walking behind, keeping me safe, Sagan was chomping at the bit to get home and slow was not on the menu. Stu was reminding me sweetly that the correct command is “no, easy” at which point my inner sensor has evaporated. I said bad words loudly out in public while confusing my dog. I felt like dirt after that which made everything worse. It did not take long before I captured my equanimity at which point I literally stopped to smell the flowers along the path. We made it home with only our psyches fractured.
What I learned from this experience is that I don’t really like street festivals and there is no need to put my dog and myself through it. I also learned that using a cane along with a dog may be a good idea at times. I don’t like the idea of using a cane along with a dog but I have been told that pride goes before a fall. I don’t like falling so I guess I will become humble for the sake of sanity and safety.