Rambo Goes for a Walk

We have met Rambo, the cute tawny labrador with friendly eyes, who came into Mr. S's family as an one year old pup. Male pups generally are boisterous. Rambo was no different, his unruliness getting out of hand when he was taken for a walk. He would pull forcefully at his leash, worse try to break free with a violent jerk, while excitedly sniffing some unknown smell. Labradors are great sniffer dogs and are used for  smelling  and tracking down  their targets. Most mornings, there would be this curious sight of Mr S. walking a Rambo, who would be trotting by his side in a zig-zag manner, sniffing and trying to dart here and there. It was a typical Catch 22 situation; both of them eager for a walk but feeling stressed and exhausted at the end of it. " There has to be a better way of walking a dog," thought Mr. S. " This is becoming more and more tiresome by the day." So he and Vivek shopped and brought home an accessory called a "Body Harness."
      The Body harness, as the very name suggests was a tool to restrict an animal's movements while walking, and gradually guide him to a steady and sedate walking gait and pace. It was wrapped around a dog"s body and clipped onto the leash: thereby preventing the dog from pulling forcefully and causing physical harm to his master. Next morning, Mr S and Vivek , in preparation for a long, vigorous walk, set about fastening the harness onto a slightly bewildered Rambo. He eyed it suspiciously, guessing astutely that this was some new means to outwit him. He wiggled this way and that and generally  tried his best to get rid of the thing. But, of course he did not succeed in his attempts and was very resentful and rebellious at the end of it all. " Come on, Rambo," said Mr S, clicking his fingers. "Let"s go for a Walkie Walk, shall we? We have a new outfit to show everybody." But was Rambo happy and proud? No! He was most resentful. " Walkie Walk indeed," thought Rambo in disgust. " This is more like a Hospital patient walking cautiously and tentatively with the help of a nurse and a stick. I can't smell and explore to my heart's content and I definitely don't like it, no sir."
      So Rambo with his back up in rebellion against the new contraption, pulled and pushed with all his might. He did not succeed as much as he would have liked to, but gave many sore moments to both Mr. S and Vivek, who took turns to walk him.
      Suddenly Rambo noticed a rat near an overflowing garbage bin on the side of the road and in his excitement, almost toppled Mr. S  with his sudden rough and violent lunge towards the bin. Mr. S grimaced. " Serves him right," Rambo  thought  triumphantly. "Tit for tat. He has no business to restrain me from my right to explore and enjoy. I am going to give him a dose of his own medicine". 
    " Will you?", said a voice very suddenly and loudly. It also sounded very stern, startling Rambo so much that he almost jumped out of his skin. He looked around to see if Vivek or Mr. S were shouting at him to come to heel but no it was not them, In fact, they were talking to each other. Also, how could they know what he was thinking- his own, bad, wicked thoughts.
      Apparently he was imagining things. " No, you are not", said the voice again, very loudly and very close to him and for added effect , Rambo got a smart rap on his head.
 By now, Rambo was totally bewildered and frightened too. He couldn't see or smell anyone, yet he was hearing things and being physically knocked. Who, in heavens, was this person or creature scolding and punishing him? " Am I going nuts? he thought. Have I lost my hearing and sense of smell, for which we Labradors are rightly famous for."
      "" No, you  are not," said the unseen voice again. " But soon you will go nuts, going by your past and present record. As if to enhance the effect of these words, Rambo was roughly pushed to the ground, and he fell in a shivering, trembling heap. Rambo was beside himself now in confusion and fear. Who was this unseen, unknown  person who could read his thoughts and curb his rebellious and restless nature?  Did that stupid Harness have anything to do with all this? Of course, he was Rambo the Rebel.... his BODY MAY BE IN CHAINS...... BUT HIS SPIRIT WAS FREE AND BELONGED TO NONE. That being so, he still had to deal with the baffling problem of this hidden enemy.
      Rambo pulled himself together and tried to get up from the ground on which he had fallen. But suddenly a stick appeared from nowhere, giving him another smart tap on the head." Who are you, Sir?", croaked Rambo in a quivering voice, by now reduced to  a mass of jelly.  "Why are you after me? Please show yourself." "I am Canon Canine, the king of DogWorld," boomed the terrible voice suddenly and stridently, "All dogs in the world of Humans, both stray and pet are my subjects and have to  obey my rules or else......" The threat in the voice was unmistakeable. "But I have done no wrong. Why are you attacking me ?", whined Rambo petulantly.
     " Ah, ah ", said Canon Canine. " An interesting question deserving a proper answer, "Rambo, see I even know your name. Of course  you are a domestic dog, and pet dogs are generally obedient and gentle because their families take good care of them. But you, Rebel Rambo  are not one of them. You are rebellious and that is why", emphasized Canon Canine, " you need a helping { or is it, hurting) hand", guffawed Canon Canine". Here Rambo interrupted this tirade with a protesting, "That's not a fair judgment. I am good and gentle." "Is that so?, roared Canon Canine mightily.  I don't see it, going by your behaviour. You are giving your master, a gentle, kind person like  Mr. S a lot of trouble. He  looks after you with so much affection and you don't deserve  his goodness". " Of course not", said a miffed Rambo." How dare you accuse me of such bad things? I am obedient and good". " Well, if you want to show me that you obey your master, prove it by learning to walk properly on a leash", said Canon Canine. "Like this", and suddenly a big, tawny Labrador appeared at Rambo's side, striding beside him in firm and steady lopes. Rambo stared open-mouthed at Canon Canine for that was who the big labrador was ! "Do you know", said Canon. "You cause pain and discomfort to your master, Mr. S during your walks His hand pains when you pull suddenly and unexpectedly; yet he does not let go  for fear that you might get lost or meet with an accident in the congested Bangalore roads.  Have you ever realised  that you are the cause of such a big problem, you DimWit?".
      Rambo felt very small and humble. He realised that he had been thoughtless and uncaring. He felt contrite and immediately wanted to make amends. But first he had to get this terrifying and dominating Dog King off his back. "I am sorry, Mr. Canon. I feel terrible at how stupid and careless I have been. I promise that starting today, I will walk quietly and steadily at my master's heels. So please don't threaten or frighten me." "Good dog, do just that and won't I step out of your life" said Canon , extending his paw in a friendly gesture. Rambo took it in trepidation but  Canon shook paws in a firm and warm grip.
       " Goody, goody dogs are not 
          In the nature of my business;
         They are sissies, more is the fun with the
         Saucy and cocky; the rebellious and headstrong;
         Tra la la... Look out, I wander high and low in  DogWorld
          to catch the unruly dog, the knave master and to
          Set the record straight of both man and Dog.
          All is well, I go my way.
          Something is not, I have my say," 
 sang Canon in a high pitched voice and with a short bark, vanished into thin air, as suddenly as he had appeared.
      And do you know Rambo is behaving so well these days  that Mr. S sometimes removes his leash and sets him loose to romp freely but carefully in certain "safe" stretches. Rambo has also built a rapport with his master while walking and both have come to enjoy their walks,
      " I  smell the raw, wet earth,
      the  goodness of grass, of flowers;
      of living creatures, big and small,
      good and bad.
      Spaces I span, Distances we fly,
      My master and I, our body and soul 
      Harnessed to achieve greater goals.
      Off with you, Body Harness.
      We have no use for the likes of you.
       Here we zip into the very Zing of Existence",

sang Rambo, as he walked the streets of Bangalore  in a smart clip. And do you know Canon Canine came to look up his protege just only once  and so pleased was he with Rambo's behaviour that he awarded him the title of " Loyal Rambo".
    Now wasn't that a nice and interesting way to learn doggy values! If only more dogs were like Rambo, wouldn't Canon Canine be put out of business?

        

On  turning sixty

Yesterday, i turned sixty. I officially became a senior citizen, entitled to the tidbits the government and banks  give away to an ageing populace to help them cope with living standards sans a study income stream.  But I had not been working. So I was not missing anything.

        Was sixty just a numerical? To me, it did not seem different from forty or fifty. In fact, I was feeling  and getting better than the earlier decades when there had been niggling health issues, some of them quite bothersome. At this point of time, i was happy that I could handle my responsibilities  more satisfactorily and I was thankful for that. There were other dependent souls and I could not afford illness or physical inadequacy.

       In the Tambrahm spiritual schedule, turning sixty is quite an event in one”s life. Ours is a patriarchal society So For a man, it is marked by elaborate homes and poojas in the Vedic tradition. It is considered the second marriage in one’s life  and the extended family consisting of children and grand-children gather on the occasion to felicitate and shower their love and affection on the couple with expensive presents even as they pray for their long and healthy life.  Many also observe the Shastiabdhpoorthi to ward off evil portends which may otherwise mar their lives and fortunes. That set me thinking  quite a bit. In the good, old days, a man reached  sixty years, the peak of physical and social achievements like  raising and settling children, achieving professional and economic goals . So it was time to bid goodbye to the Grihastha  Ashram and move on to the next stage in a man’s life, namely the Vaanaprastha Ashram. His social world was bidding adieu to him, making place for a different dispensation; a whole new Bucket List of things to do.

Of course, when my husband entered his sixties, there was no such grand event. There had been no fanfare or festivities..The elders in the family had blessed him whole-heartedly and we cherished and flourished with their blessings.

          Now when I touched sixty, affectionate aunts and uncles called me to send their warmest wishes. A close cousin tracked the event and sent me a delicious cake filled with the chocolaty sweetness of her affection. So too now, the overtures  of all near and dear ones on the occasion overwhelmed me. After all the excitement had died down, I sat down to do some introspection. One thing was for sure…. my bucket list was long  and strong. Doubts gripped me…… did i have the timed will to do them all. Family consisted of only my husband and myself… there had been no organic growth. I was never to  know the challenges of birthing and bringing up children; the best school for learning soft and hard  skills  to face the ups and downs of life. But, this was not to be, in my case.Maybe, I was the loser. for want of it.

  An empty nest meant definitely less work in the domestic front, thereby freeing more me-time to follow your heart and chase your dreams. But time is a very elusive tool in the hands of a vague and uncertain creator. It is only too easy to fritter it away. So firstly, I had to take hold of myself.L ike Murphys law ,where work expands to fill the time available, a housewife could stretch or shrink her tasks. This meant prioritising and   scheduling, both of which were daunting and challenging at first glance. But I set to work with a firm resolve and stout heart. This meant that i had to auto motivate myself to strictly follow a daily routine that would free up time to engage in  mentally creative and socially constructive , I reiterated to myself that activities would broaden my horizons, thereby elevating the mind and spirit. Time and again, I reiterated to myself that i was doing all these things to nourish my inner self  and achieve meaningful goals. The moment, I anchored myself,I  found myself filled with a strong sense of purpose. My mood soared and  happiness engulfed me, even before I had embarked on my journey.