MINDSET-MASTERS

Mindset Masters with me as I went through my typical day of working and running errands. We had our challenges right from the start, because from our first car ride together, she got carsick. If I had let myself focus on the fear of “what if she never gets over being carsick?” she would have flunked and had to go to a new home. Refusing to let any such thought take up valuable space in my mind was critical! I kept KNOWING she would grow out of it. Little by little, riding in cars became easier. But then we boarded a bus! When we first boarded the city bus together, she made a 3-­‐foot drool puddle on the floor, which was thankfully already wet from snowy boots. I knew I could not focus on “what if.” “I believe in you,” I told her. She could outgrow that too, once we had taken a few rides. If she failed, it would be because I failed HER by not mastering my own mind. And I never wavered in my belief that she would become an amazing guide dog who touched many people’s lives. One spring day, I was at a bus stop with baby Thunder. She had finally gotten over getting carsick every time we were in a car, and she had stopped drooling on every bus. Having conquered these tendencies, I felt we had accomplished a lot. She had become a champion rider who boarded any vehicle with wagging tail. Except on one fateful day, it all fell apart. Thinking that today was just like any other day, Thunder and I went to the bus stop. The bus rolled up, and my champion 163