A Lesson From My Dog

I think there's a wonderful lesson to be learned from my dog. And it's funny too that I can suggest that I can learn something from a notoriously "not-so-smart" dog. But today, the lesson was so clear to me that I had to stop and marvel at it. You see, one of our dogs is getting up in age. She's a 11.5 year old greyhound and as far as greyhounds go, that's pretty old. I'm just now starting to worry about her level of activity and I'm doing this despite her showing any real signs of slowing down. I can't help but to worry that maybe we shouldn't be taking her for 7 mile hikes/runs anymore. I mean there has got to come a time when she just shouldn't be doing it anymore. I always think there will come a day when she's smart enough to know (by what we are wearing) what is in store for her should she choose to get up and show signs of excitement to come along. I expect this day to come because our first greyhound did exactly that. We would take him for a big hike one day and then the next day he would just look at us and say, "Yah right, I'm not falling for that again. You humans go and knock yourselves out while I lay here on my comfy bed. See ya." But then again, he was always our 'smart' dog.

Given the fact that this dog is not as smart and will continue to want to come no matter what torture we put her through, it will be up to me to make the decision that she is no longer fit to play. But that decision will be a tough one. I already think that she shouldn't be able to do what she does. It's amazing to watch her bouncing happily along some seriously rugged terrain, tail wagging the entire time. Today is when the lesson hit me. You see, nothing has ever been introduced into my little dog's belief system that suggested to her that she shouldn't be able to handle this long trail run. She doesn't know that she's getting too old for it. There is no reason in the world that she would, or should, think that she can't do it . . . and therefore she happily trucks on. I'm sure she looks at our other, younger dog and thinks, "If he can do it I can do it." It's all about your intention and your belief. You can do anything if you truly believe you can do it. The moment doubt enters your mind you are compromising your ability, so perhaps we need to train our brains as hard as we train our bodies.