Okay, This Is for My Students

So, I've mentioned the blog to a few of you, and you have heard about my secret life in dog agility. These are some videos of me running with Douce. You will notice that I am actually wearing running shoes and some type of athletic pants. It was a shock to me to discover that I had to run with my dog in agility, but he loves it so much. I would do anything for him--even wear running shoes.

You will also notice that I am not extremely good at this sport. For example, I run slow, and um, I run like a girl. Shocking. My dog is way faster than I am. Wherever he goes wrong on the course, it's because I confused him. I also get lost on course, especially when I have to try to remember more than one "map" of obstacles at a time. We qualified in both of these runs--just barely in the first one! The timer went off just as we finished the last jump there. In the second run, it looks like I almost pull Douce off of the last jump--I'm too slow to keep up with him. Last summer, we ran for three months without qualifying in one single run. That means we made a mistake that disqualified us every time. I tried to find something good about every run we did, which is easier to do when you have a great partner like Douce. Occasionally, I even find things that I do well.

I do think it's good for teachers to do something that is challenging for them, and to watch people for whom it seems really easy. Maybe teachers forget that learning is hard when they are only in front of the classroom, and never in the middle of it. In agility, there are some very athletic teams out there--the human handlers can run and remember where they are going and where their super fast dogs are, all at one time! Doing agility reminds me that learning is fun, but also difficult. Success is not just about talent, but about perseverance, practice, repetition, and working with instructors that can help you figure out how to tackle problems. My dog has talent, and my instructors are great. I persevere.

Stella also has a great time doing agility, although her phobias have kept her from competing. For Stella, competition is not the goal. She loves practice, and it makes her feel good about herself! Her classes start soon, so I hope to have some videos of her posted within the next few weeks.