I could see for many years. But now that I'm blind, I see better than ever. Tips for better living. For people, of course. Dogs get it.
Advice for humans:
Take time to smell "the roses" (your words, not mine)... you know what I really mean.
1. Get right in there with your snout, and breath it in - deeply.
Life is Good - with smell. Oh yeeaaaahhhh.
Scent is the strongest of senses, triggering more emotions and memories than vision, hearing and touch. It sounds weird, but ask any dog - any day. Blind dogs in particular - we are scent hounds.
For navigation, I zeroed in on my seeing eye dog brother Elvis. In particular, his stinky basset butt. Who needs eyes when you've got that super charged GPS unit guiding your way?
Your human author friends know the importance of smell, too - they heard about it in writer's classes.
Dude "no eyes, no problem" Ayers - apres SUP (standup paddle boarding) session
2. More Heart. Less Head. (Humans, repeat after me....)
Don't worry about all that dumb stuff. You know, the irritating small stuff you obsess over? Note to people: almost everything you think about is dumb.
Let it go. Be free. This is the most important point.
Don't worry about how you look.
3. Jump all in. Give your whole heart. Don't hold back. If you have baggage, get over It.
Learn to trust.
Learn to give.
LOVE.
Me and my dog brothers are rescue dogs. We all had at least two moms before finding the third, the keeper. We wasted too much time worrying, running away and being bad dogs. Don't do that.
Listen. (Selective dog listening counts)
That's me, in the middle, in a two dog jibe - a downwind turn on a windsurfer. In the Columbia River Gorge. At this point, I still had one working eye.
4. Surfing is life. The ups and downs - they ARE the ride.
Without downs, the ups aren't up.
I was in a lot of pain - glaucoma. Not treatable in dogs like it is in humans. I lost one eye several years ago. A year later, the other one went to heaven. So then I was totally blind.
It didn't change a thing. I'm a surfer, through and through.
Step up to the nose, walk the board, adjust your weight.
Ride that wave. Strut your stuff.
5. Showing up is 99% of life.
Don't stay home.
Don't chicken out.
Don't be a no show.
So now I'm a blind surf pirate. How cool is that? At Doggie Dash, an Oregon Humane Society fundraiser.
6. SHOW don't TELL. Show you care. Life is short!
With a ratio of 1:7 human:dog years, there is not a moment to waste.
Life is short. Tell them you love them.
Speak. If you can't speak, use what you've got. Dogs are all about body language. Use your body. Your language.
Make your move.
My favorite thing - windsurfing the Gorge. See it, smell it, feel it.
Now get out there and ride the waves of life. There's room on board with me!
Dude (the Dudester)
Surf Dog Diaries reporter