Elf in August, 2010
August 1, 2010
Elf benefits from the clicker, even though my skills with it are best described as emerging. It is possible to clicker her away from temptations to use her energy in undesirable ways -- such as tearing out cucumber leaves in a raised bed out back. She’s steady with her “Sit” now, along with going to various rooms in the house and into her crate. I don’t want to overdo the training since she is not even five months old yet, so the goal's to make it fun, short and to create things to slowly build on. The slowly bit as much for my benefit as Elf’s... We are starting a new one the past two days -- “Give” when I need to take something away from her. Higher value treat definitely assists with THIS goal.
When she starts to look bored I ask her to sit or come, click and toss her a kibble bit when she complies. The process of never knowing when this will happen keeps the girl on her toes, causes her to check me by looking more often. It also causes her to dash up to me randomly, or to sit at odd moments, looking expectant. I sigh. We work on coordinating a request with the treat.
Apple catching sessions have paled in excitement, yet Elf has energy to burn. A second highly active game was needed. I tied an old washcloth to the long, floppy end of a buggy whip (left over from donkey driving days). With this in hand I spin in a circle with Elf chasing the lure. She loves it! It wears her out in a good way.
For gentler games in a different part of the yard, I found a use for two large, old dog beds: set them end to end atop an old auto lift that is in one corner, on a concrete floor below a high tin roof. Somebody had set this area up long ago to work on cars. I put chain link around it, with a gate, so dogs can be “contained” safely when necessary. The old dog beds have found new purpose -- trampoline! Elf loves to leap onto one end and “pronk” her way to the other. Pronk: the way certain African antelopes spring straight up into the air.
The pup’s been mellowing slightly over the last 7-10 days. We two enjoy contemplative times occasionally. With my feet up, it’s fun to sit out back and watch hummingbirds chase one other around the feeders. Large, bright yellow swallowtail butterflies are often seen -- and get Elf excited enough that she even chases their shadows when she finds she can’t reach them. Big white winged and Eurasian collared doves often perch atop the wooden fencing, twisting their heads rapidly to follow Elf’s movements below. She loves to stroll up towards them, then sit and study the large birds. Moving her own head and ears. Sometimes I’ll recite a Baha’i prayer or passage aloud, especially as the sun comes up, and Elf will lie down nearby, pink tongue hanging out, peaceful for 45 seconds or less.
I am glad that Elf arrived here in early summer. Potty training, respect for furniture and carpeting are not yet so much in place that it’s a good idea to spend a lot of time romping in the house. The outdoors is wonderful!
*********
This past week I started reading Faith, Physics and Psychology, by Baha’i author John Fitzgerald Medina. He explores common ground and parallels between Baha’i beliefs, the holistic movement (including quantum physics) and the self-actualization movement based on the work of the late psychologist, Dr. Abraham Maslow. His review of physicist David Bohm's holographic universe is especially intriguing for numerous reasons. But what's most engaging to me today? ... Here is a brief passage:
“According to the Baha’i writings, reality actually exists only in the unseen spiritual worlds of God -- the “Kingdom of God.” Consequently, the physical universe around us is regarded as a projection from that reality. Along these same lines, in a talk ‘Abdu’l-Baha gave in 1911, he stated: “The spiritual world is like unto the phenomenal [physical] world. They are the exact counterpart of each other. Whatever objects appear in this world of existence [physical world] are the outer pictures of the world of heaven [spiritual worlds].”
I wonder what it will be like, in those spiritual worlds to be discovered only when I leave this one behind, to encounter the “pictures [in] the world of heaven” of dogs and donkeys!
