Aamer's dream come true

About a year and a half ago Bracha and I sat down on the train to Tel Aviv when a young man approached us. He said he had heard Bracha giving me commands and realized that there was a woman with a guide dog. He was curious because he was also blind and was thinking of getting a dog. He was from Peki'in and still lived with his parents, and they did not feel that a dog in the house was a good idea. THey were afraid that a dog would make a mess, shed, and misbehave. He therefore had talked to Beit Oved, but had not gotten a dog, and got around with a cane.

Bracha started trying to encourage him to get a dog. She said he could come to our house and bring his parents, and they could see how clean, well-behaved, and good I was. I could tell he was tempted. After that we heard nothing more from him. But when Bracha heard that a man called Aamer from Peki'in had just gotten a dog, she began to wonder if it was the same Aamer we had met on the train.

Sure enough, today when the phone rang Bracha looked at me and said, "Suki, there's a surprise! Ami is stopping by to visit. And then there was Ami, opening the gate and I was so excited to see him! Bracha told me to sit and it was all I could to to keep my rear end on the ground. Soon we sat down and Ami told Bracha that Aamer was indeed the young man we had met on the train! He has a Labrador retriever, and is now finishing the course! Ami and a new trainer named Natanel are his trainers. Bracha said she'd call him to see how things were going. Good for Aamer for convincing his parents to let him have a dog. And maybe, just maybe, I did a bit of the convincing myself.

"If I tell your dog..."

It's raining! The bad thing about this is that we were supposed to go to the beach, and now we can't. The nice thing about this is that I can sit in the yard and get wet and there is a different smell in the air. It smells like winter. Bracha and I stood outside and watched the rain come down and listened to the thunder, and she assured me that there would still be beach days left, and that soon the ri ver would fill up and I could swim there again.

Thursday we got on a bus to go to the board meeting and then got off that one and got on another. Bracha wasn't too sure where we were, so she asked the driver to tell us where to get off. He politely offered the seat right by the door and I sat down and looked out the window just as I like to do. When we got to the stop he told us that we had to get off here and started to tell Bracha that we had to walk up to the stoplight, cross the street, and turn left. We already know how to do this, but Bracha knew he was just being helpful, and she could tell he was a bit concerned because that corner is very complicated to cross. He looked down at me and asked, "If I tell your dog hwhere to go, will he understand?"

We all make mistakes...

I must admit that I've made a few mistakes lately. And Bracha admits that she made some, too. We discussed it, as usual, with Bracha getting down on the floor and sitting beside me and stroking my fur, and me thumping my tail and putting a large front paw on her arm. That way, we usually come to an understanding.

It all began when we started walking towards the beach. I was excited, as I always am when we reach the end of the main street in Nahariya and I can sense we are getting close to the water. And I guess I wasn't concentrating and Bracha tripped over one of those stupid brick flower beds they have around the trees. She sat down and made me sit, too. I felt awful and started licking her but she'd have none of it. Up we got and she called me on it, made me approach the same place and go around the flower bed and Ithat time gave it a wide berth. I guess I didn't deserve a run on the beach, but I got one anyway.

And when we got into town it was Bracha's turn to make a mistake. She forgot my shoes, and as soon as we got to the stoplight I started dancing around on the corner like I had hot peppers under my paws. Which, for all practical purposes, I did. Bracha apologized and we took a bus instead of walking so that I wouldn't have to walk on the hot pavement. So we both made mistakes that time and will try and do better next time.

When we got to the dentist everyone was glad to see me as usual. I was offered water, petted, and escorted into the doctor's office. But when we started to go into the next room, the technician said she was afraid of me and asked if I could wait outside. The woman asked Bracha if she was angry, and Bracha said she wasn't because she had asked nicely and she understood. Bracha led me behind the reception area, and told me to wait there quietly, which I did. The woman was very apologetic, and said afterwards, "I'll bet she hates me now." Bracha assured her that I don't hate anyone. But I wish she were not afraid of me. It's a shame. I hear that petting animals makes people feel relaxed and happy.

Fun and Politics

Wow! I'm still sleeping off yesterday. We got in the car and suddenly I smelled that we were at the beach! Bracha let me off the leash and I ran and ran and swam and ran again! Afterwards I went to sleep on the grass while Bracha and her friends ate and talked. When we got back Bracha said we were going out and that I would be busy at the demonstration that evening, so I slept some more and my fur dried to its usual curly soft fluffiness that it gets after swimming at the beach. In the evening we started walking down the street in town. There were lots of people and a lot of noise, and the music was very loud, but I was very proud to be the only guide dog there. Bracha said it was important. And there were 450,000 people out walking and demonstrating last night! I wonder...was I the only guide dog?

I must be a little ill.

I'm not sure what happened to me this morning. I'm still a bit frightened and confused, and I'm glad Bracha is next to me, comforting me and talking softly to me and telling me everything is OK. Suddenly I started running all over the living room and then, well I don't remember much. Bracha told me that I had a "sees-your". I'm not sure what that means, but she explained that it looks like I have a disease called epilepsy. Saoirse had that, and she took special pills for it. Then Bracha called Ami to tell him, and Ami was very sympathetic and said that if I needed to take medicine it was OK. I can still do everything I always to, and Bracha reassured me and told me that she still loves me and I will always be her guide dog. Afterwards I was still frightened and disoriented, and stood at the edge of the patio barking at Bracha and not sure what to do. Then I went to sleep for a while. I feel so bad, but I guess this is something that is beyond my control. As long as I can be Bracha's guide dog and do what I am supposed to do, I'll be OK.

Hey, are those Adidas?

One cannot remain annonymous when walking with my red shoes on. The moment we walked out of the train station the comments started:
"Hey, are those Adidas?"
"Wow, look at those!"
"Hey, look, that dog has shoes!"
And on and on. I think Bracha gets a bit tired of it and simply ignores most of them, but after I made my way through Azrieli and for the first time found my way out of the center and onto the pedestrian bridge, one woman started up and we got a good laugh. First she asked the woman next to her why I had shoes. The woman didn't know. Bracha couldn't resist. They were, after all, talking about me as if she were not even there and could not hear.
"If you want to know, you can ask me directly, you know."
"Why does your dog have shoes?"
Bracha explained that the shoes were to protect my feet from the hot sidewalks.
The woman considered this. "But, up till now they (dogs) never complained..."
We goth chuckled to ourselves. The time of dogs being silent is over! Hooray!

Now I have to tell you about my new swimming place. The river is just about dried up and is nothing more than a muddy trickle. But wow! The fence around the reservour is, well, not quite intact, so we made our way in! Now Nuala and I can swim! What fun!

Real Shoes!

Wow! My new shoes arrived just in time for our trip to Tel Aviv. I'm so happy and proud! These are real shoes with rubber soles, so Bracha doesn't have to keep taking them on and off all the time. My other ones are torn and all worn out. So yesterday we went to Tel Aviv and I wore them all morning - on the train, up the moving stairs, out to the bus stop, and on the street! And after Bracha photographed them, we discovered that they have reflectors on them, too! Thank you, Yariv, for suggesting them!


Now I have to tell you about the taxi driver whom we met coming home from the train station last night. He was standing outside the exit to the train station and we had never met him before. He asked if I was quiet and Bracha assured him that I know how to behave nicely in a taxi, and would only sit on the floor. He opened the back door and I slipped in between the seats. He explained that he usually does not take dogs. "But sometimes when it's necessary, I make an exception." He explained that he was an observant Moslem, and that if a dog licks his hand he would have to wash his hands seven times to be clean again. Bracha said she understood, and that she was pleased at his willingness to understand the necessity of taking guide dogs. So if he can take a dog in his cab, even if his religion says dogs are unclean, why do others make such feeble excuses?