What I Learned Today

Irie, at six months old, is a precious, smart pup. And an awesome adult dog in the making. When we walk, she can be sporadic in her movements at first, zig-zagging in front of and behind me; and is very squirrelly about encountering any people or noises at all. However, by the later stretch of our now routine, twice daily "migration", we get in sync with each other and become seamless as a pack. This requires consistency on my part, always keeping her to the left of me, while Kua walks to my right. The rhythm and energy release of the walk allow for Irie's young, puppy mind to focus on the activity at hand. And when distractions even potentially begin to arise in my line of sight - i.e. I see people coming toward us from up the street - my job is to refrain from feeding into her anxiety by anticipating a problem. So instead, I stay calm, project my calmness toward her, and anticipate a smooth walk through and through.

The "life lesson" wrapped up in this dog-walking scenario, is that we create what we imagine. This is highly empowering; but as such, requires that we be responsible for how we anticipate our life unfolding. We must understand that "thoughts become things". So if we constantly anticipate problems arising, so they shall arise. Conversely, if we imagine success and exude confidence in ourselves to carry out a "smooth walk" through life, then life will unfold just as we want it to. This empowerment is self-fulfilling and exponential. The better we get at positively focusing and using our thought energy, the better life will get. The better life gets, the more confident we become...and the cycle of positivity expands from there.

Something I learned from Cesar Millan, is that - while walking - we should focus the majority of our attention on constructively addressing and redirecting any unwanted behavior coming from our dogs; but not ALL of our energy. Sometimes I find myself focusing all of my thoughts on wanting the dog to behave perfectly, alongside me as the "perfect pack leader". But this is a recipe for failure. Because for one, focusing all of my thought power on the dog...gives control to the dog. This is exactly the opposite of what I, as a leader, am trying to achieve. And obsessing over my own behavior, becoming frustrated when I can't pull off the kind of "magic" I envision a true Dog Whisperer can, insures that I'm going to fail. This is because I am thinking negatively, period. A forever-learning and growing pack leader needs to remind herself that she is human, no one is perfect, and as long as I am learning something new on every walk I take, I am always in the process of becoming a better leader.

One thing I find that helps me stay balanced in this regard is listening to music while I walk. Listening to my ipod is reserved for walks with certain dogs, and purposely turned off for others. Today, letting some Adam Lambert get into the groove of my steps made for a more relaxed practice. And when I am more relaxed, directly plugged into the primal outlets of myself that respond to music, the dogs feel the rhythm too. It is in these moments that a walk with dogs becomes more like a dance. It really seemed to work today, because Irie made it past a few different encounters with strangers, remaining calm and continuing forward without regard for her fears.