Traveler and I were up bright an early on Wednesday, because Doug was on his way to finish up our training. I filled out a card for him to thank him for everything, and I halso finished the picture I was drawing of Traveler, to go along with it. He has done alot with this dog, so I wanted to thank him.
He arrived around 9:30ish, and he dropped the paperwork and such in the room before we set out on a walk. He noticed the little drawing of Traveler right away, as it was sitting on the desk. He asked who drew it, and when I told him it was me, he seemed really interested. He seemed happy when I said it was for him. I'd never really gotten a chance to show him any artwork, so when he liked that, I decided to show him more; a few of the things I painted, and some photography. He noted that I must have to really focus up close to do artwork, and I agreed.
*note to self...at some point I want to do a large, detailed picture of dog in harness.
We set out towards the center of town for a little walk. I wanted to practice a walk down Broad St. while he was here, especially the tricky crossings. I walked to the ceramics store, because I wanted to pick up the bowl I painted for Traveler's birthday, but it was closed. Doug mentioned that we could go to a coffe shop until it opened, so we made our way towards the town square. There was a military funeral to take place around 11, so the street was blocked off. A police officer helped me across the intersection, which was nice. We made our way to the Better Bean Coffee Co. and sat down with a coffee. We found out a little bit more about the funeral. The boy was only 20 years old, and died in an explosion in Iraq. When the funeral started, the whole store stood still, and everyone went to the window front to see it. He was the first soldier from Bridgewater to give his life since Vietnam. Doug desribed it to me, it was a procession of soldiers in uniforms, carrying American flags, and different vehicles. It was a sobering reminder of how it affects us here, though it seems like the other side of the world. Once the street cleared, we made our way out again.
Jaren was outside when we got to the store. She knew I was there for Traveler's bowl, and was happy to bring it out. It came out really nice, the colors and lines did what I'd hoped for. I should post a picture of it here...Jaren and Doug chatted for a few minutes, while Jaren's little dog Autumn circled Traveler. Doug mentioned what a special dog Traveler is :).
Once we returned to the dorm, we filled out the ownership paperwork. We got our little Framed diploma, so now Traveler and I are an official team. :) I showed Doug a few more pictures I took before he left. He told us what a great job we did, and I thanked him for everything, then he left. Then I got to thinking what a different experience it was this time, in contrast to last July. Everything was so positive; there were a few little challenges, but it was a great experience overall. I was happy to go back to GDF and see al of those wonderful people again in January, but I do hope this dog and I will be together for the long run. He is just great, and we're learning more about each other every day.
Class in the afternoon was pretty much uneventful. I was glad to be done. THe afternoon was relaxing, and after dinner, I had a chance to interview a fellow GDF grad. She has worked multiple dogs, and does a great deal of volunteering for GDF, so she definitely had a great story to tell. I'm getting more excited about writing these feature stories!
No comments:
Post a Comment