By Chase and Jan Tomlinson
One morning in early March, my mom woke up and discovered that she couldn’t see anything up close. That meant she couldn’t read, write, work on the computer (thank goodness I write Chase’s Corner on it!) or use her Smart Phone. Her distance vision was also very blurry, but I was very relieved when she could see well enough to get my breakfast! I was thankful for that because I can’t survive without my breakfast.
Oh, oh. Does that mean I now have to be trained as a seeing-eye dog along with all the other duties I have? I am a very busy Canine doing therapy work, agility, obedience, and always letting her know when the phone is ringing, even though she keeps telling me that her hearing is fine.
She has a great eye doctor who came in to the clinic that very Sunday to take care of her. He sent her to the specialist the very next morning, so this will turn out to be the positive ending to this story.
Later that day, I heard her say that she couldn’t see to drive and that I was going to have to learn to drive! I hope it doesn’t mean that I have to wear glasses! Now, I am too short to reach the pedals, so we are going to have to figure this out. Let’s see… I could sit on her lap and steer, and she could work the pedals. I wonder if I can remember the way to the training field.
Hey! I have another solution. We could get a golf cart because then I COULD reach the pedals. I would certainly need sunglasses, but wouldn’t need to get a driver’s license. I have seen the Golden Retrievers on television who drive all the time, so they must have a doggie driver’s license. I wonder how much a license will cost?
Three weeks went by with friends and students helping transport me and my mom to the training field and to other places. Thank goodness, because I certainly didn’t want to run out of my dog food. I took my GPS to the agility course so I could help her find her way around the course! I am so glad that I ordered one last month.
There is something about Sundays because three weeks to the day, my mom got up and had her eyesight back! Whew! What a relief for her and especially for me. I have been studying the doggie driver’s license manual, but now don’t have to study it anymore. Thanks to the great work of the doctor and positive attitude of my mom, our lives have now returned to normal. I put my agility GPS in my toy box in case I need it for another time.
We always have challenges in life, and how we meet them can make a big difference. My challenges have been to learn lots of obedience exercises and how to run a perfect agility course. I have met them with a positive attitude, having fun along the way. Having fun is a key element in learning new things in the dog world. I hope you will meet YOUR new challenges in the same way. Challenges help us grow and be strong. The dog world is full of opportunities for you.
~Sir Chase
