That’s One Thing My Mother Taught Me

“I have to go to physical therapy,” I said to my Mom.

“What happened?” she asked.

“I have a herniated disc.”

“That dog is too much for you,” she said.

“Oh, no, that’s not it,” I said.

One day, after trying to get out of bed, I realized that I couldn’t bend. There was a pain that went from my bum to the back of my knee. I couldn’t figure out what it might be. Since the pain came and went for quite a while, I decided to go seek medical attention. The doctor prescribed physical therapy, and after about four sessions, I felt much better. The physical therapist said that my problem could have been caused by a bunch of different things combined.

Mom’s words still echo in my head when Lila pulls me along on our walks. Even though I am starting to feel much better, I still feel that nagging little pain in the rear when she pulls me along. Other things can bring a dull ache too, but being pulled this way does not help me feel better. I have been working with Lila and am trying to teach her not to pull me along so much. We learned this skill at the class that we took at the Animal Humane Society. The trick is to stop walking when the dog starts pulling. The dog turns around and looks like you have some sort of problem. Lila hasn’t quite figured out why I keep stopping on our walks. My rear and I hope that someday soon she will walk with me instead of pull me along.

The other day Mom wasn’t feeling very well. I told her that I thought she might have overdone it when she was working in the garden.

“Oh, no, that’s not it,” she said. “I don’t think so.”

It’s funny how we stick up for the things that make us happy. That’s one thing my Mother taught me!