She's a Keeper
Yesterday, I was hanging out at a local restaurant, sitting outside enjoying the breeze and the greenery Angie was trying to keep some level of decorum as a fairly large Golden Retriever lay across from us at another table. Perfect picture of a beautiful spring day. A lady says “What’s her personality like?” Huh? Who are you talking to? One thing as a blind person, it’s hard to know when someone is referring a question or comment to you unless it’s directly pointed out first. She repeats, “I’ve been learning about dogs and heard they have so many different personalities, what’s hers?” I figured that this question was being posed to me, the oracle of wisdom and thought on the canine kingdom, or at least that’s what it feels like when I’m out and about with Angie. People are so willing to share EVERYTHING about their experiences with dogs with you, probably as a way of connecting with a blind person or as someone they’re not quite sure how to interact with.
I was honestly stumped to describe her. The reason being is that we’re starting to meld into that point in our relationship where the characteristics of the other (in this case Angie and myself) are becoming intertwined together. I had a hard time, discerning what were her traits and which ones were mine. This is partly because being four months out, I am still getting a clearer picture of who she really is, her preferences, her weaknesses, her quirks, her fears, and how all of that fits into my life in her role as my guide dog. I’m sure that this phenomenon would be a fascinating dissertation topic for a psychology student. But I digress.
But I did recall a conversation with someone where I shared that being only four months together it feels like we’ve always been together. She doesn’t replace Denver, just picks up where my life with him entered into a new phase. Though, my neighbor and I joke and say that Denver is now a Saint, because she’ll point out when I say “Denver would have never done that!” And we’ll say….”Saint Denver!”
And that’s where we pick up with those first year moments that happened today. Angie and I have been hitting some fairly major milestones together. We’ve negotiated a suitable wake-up time. We’ve agreed that ice cubes are a must for the warmer months. And she was there with me as I faced and conquered my fear of going to the dentist. As a side note, doctor’s visits are always a little awkward with a guide dog. You’re not really sure how they’re going to react. And especially when you’re otherwise indisposed, you can’t easily manhandle your dog into a correct working position. I’ll let you fill in the gaps of the types of doctor appointments I’m referring to. Hey! This is real life with a guide dog! Some choose this life, others not so much! But for today, it is mine!
After my neighbor, her nephew, and I finished shopping, we returned to her car to pack everything up to take home. Now this visit was fairly routine, though I noticed that Angie was a bit more distracted, primarily because she hadn’t burned off any energy with work or play. So we’re back at the car, putting the bags in. I made a huge rookie mistake and let go of her leash. This is a horrible habit I got into while I had Denver since I had a level of trust based on his behavior that he wouldn’t go anywhere. Well, here’s where phrase “Saint Denver would have never done that!” comes in. Before I could realize it, my perfectly trained guide dog broke bad and was off happily visiting another dog. Total disregard of her working attire, which was the harness. Total disregard for my pleads for “Come, Angie!” She was NOT the picture of a well-trained guide dog. She would not have been picked as the dog in the updated Disney movie of “Atta Girl Kelly!” My neighbor’s nephew, had to go get her for me. At that point, I was furious! I could remember the class lecture at the Seeing Eye where they read a passionate letter from a graduate who had to notify the school that his new guide dog had been killed by an oncoming car after running off leash in the backyard. In that lecture, we all tearfully vow never ever to do that. And to remember they are dogs first and guides second. They think, react, and process the world like dogs, not as humans. So in this case, she took advantage of a mistake I made and did what dogs do. Thankfully, nothing happened. But it could have easily turned out differently.
I felt embarrassed and quickly vowed that Angie would never be allowed to do that again. She’s going to do 30 minutes of obedience EVERY day. And the list of corrective actions goes on. All well and good, but after I could laugh about it. It describes who she is and the things I have to be mindful of.
She is joyful.
She is witty.
She is lovable.
She is spirited.
She is intelligent.
And most importantly she is mine!
So I chalk this up to a first year moment which brings so much joy, challenge, and love into my life. And until next time in the chronicles of “Angie and Me” the parallel version of “Marley and Me!”
I was honestly stumped to describe her. The reason being is that we’re starting to meld into that point in our relationship where the characteristics of the other (in this case Angie and myself) are becoming intertwined together. I had a hard time, discerning what were her traits and which ones were mine. This is partly because being four months out, I am still getting a clearer picture of who she really is, her preferences, her weaknesses, her quirks, her fears, and how all of that fits into my life in her role as my guide dog. I’m sure that this phenomenon would be a fascinating dissertation topic for a psychology student. But I digress.
But I did recall a conversation with someone where I shared that being only four months together it feels like we’ve always been together. She doesn’t replace Denver, just picks up where my life with him entered into a new phase. Though, my neighbor and I joke and say that Denver is now a Saint, because she’ll point out when I say “Denver would have never done that!” And we’ll say….”Saint Denver!”
And that’s where we pick up with those first year moments that happened today. Angie and I have been hitting some fairly major milestones together. We’ve negotiated a suitable wake-up time. We’ve agreed that ice cubes are a must for the warmer months. And she was there with me as I faced and conquered my fear of going to the dentist. As a side note, doctor’s visits are always a little awkward with a guide dog. You’re not really sure how they’re going to react. And especially when you’re otherwise indisposed, you can’t easily manhandle your dog into a correct working position. I’ll let you fill in the gaps of the types of doctor appointments I’m referring to. Hey! This is real life with a guide dog! Some choose this life, others not so much! But for today, it is mine!
After my neighbor, her nephew, and I finished shopping, we returned to her car to pack everything up to take home. Now this visit was fairly routine, though I noticed that Angie was a bit more distracted, primarily because she hadn’t burned off any energy with work or play. So we’re back at the car, putting the bags in. I made a huge rookie mistake and let go of her leash. This is a horrible habit I got into while I had Denver since I had a level of trust based on his behavior that he wouldn’t go anywhere. Well, here’s where phrase “Saint Denver would have never done that!” comes in. Before I could realize it, my perfectly trained guide dog broke bad and was off happily visiting another dog. Total disregard of her working attire, which was the harness. Total disregard for my pleads for “Come, Angie!” She was NOT the picture of a well-trained guide dog. She would not have been picked as the dog in the updated Disney movie of “Atta Girl Kelly!” My neighbor’s nephew, had to go get her for me. At that point, I was furious! I could remember the class lecture at the Seeing Eye where they read a passionate letter from a graduate who had to notify the school that his new guide dog had been killed by an oncoming car after running off leash in the backyard. In that lecture, we all tearfully vow never ever to do that. And to remember they are dogs first and guides second. They think, react, and process the world like dogs, not as humans. So in this case, she took advantage of a mistake I made and did what dogs do. Thankfully, nothing happened. But it could have easily turned out differently.
I felt embarrassed and quickly vowed that Angie would never be allowed to do that again. She’s going to do 30 minutes of obedience EVERY day. And the list of corrective actions goes on. All well and good, but after I could laugh about it. It describes who she is and the things I have to be mindful of.
She is joyful.
She is witty.
She is lovable.
She is spirited.
She is intelligent.
And most importantly she is mine!
So I chalk this up to a first year moment which brings so much joy, challenge, and love into my life. And until next time in the chronicles of “Angie and Me” the parallel version of “Marley and Me!”
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