GANEIDA'S KNOT.

Go mbeannai Dia duit.

About Me

My photo
Quaker by conviction, mother by default, Celticst through love, Christ follower because I once was lost but now am found...

Saturday, April 18, 2009

SIT!


I loathe people who keep dogs. They are cowards who haven't got the guts to bite people themselves. ~Author Unknown
Once upon a time we owned a dog; a spotty dog, a dog with the sweetest temperament but absolutely no brains.

Christy was probably the wrong dog for us. I had too many small children & Christy required more exercise than my oldest boy could reasonably give her so we took the opportunities that came our way & gave thanks.

In those days I had one in school, two year old twins, a brand spanking new baby girl, & a large dog with more exuberance than sense. That being the case I occasionally took the opportunity to strap the burgeoning Houdinis into their twin stroller, strap the girl into her sling, tie the exuberant puppy to the stroller & hike the 2 miles up to the school to pick up my oldest son.

Luckily for us this was back in the days when actually seeing a car on the road was a noteworthy event & we strolled serenely down the middle of the bitumen ~ the middle of the bitumen being the only sane place to push the stroller as the edges crumbled away into rutted ditches that were completely unnavigable by anything bar a mountain goat.

The school was a one room, two teacher outfit ~ on the side of the road that didn't have a decent footpath. Naturally we waited on the other side. When the hand bell released the 30 small scholars interred inside the building I jammed on the stroller brake, tucked my daughter securely in with her brothers, told the dog to sit & crossed the road to escort my small son across the unmarked street, school dismissal time being the only time there was any traffic.

When I turned round to check on my children I was horrified to find the twin Houdinis had escaped their harness. Theo had slid down to release the brake. Dino had clambered onto the hood of the stroller & was urging the ecstatic dog into a trot. My daughter was wedged bolt upright gurgling with delight as the traffic whizzed by & the stroller began to gather speed down the hill.

Less than impressed I did the only thing possible under the circumstances. I bellowed, "SIT!" at the top of my lungs.

Three dogs, 2 adults & 4 small children, none of them mine, promptly sat. *sigh*

Yep, they were my kinesthetic learners & destined to drive every teacher forced to endure them completely round the bend because "You need to exercise your mind as well as your body" only as a wide eyed Theo once confessed to an irate teacher, "But I don't come to school to learn. I come to play sport & socialise." A simple philosophy but highly effective. They started young.

10 comments:

seekingmyLord said...

LOL!!!! All I can think of is I am so thankful it wasn't me!

As a homeschooling parent, I agree with Theo's point, by the way.

Britwife said...

That is the funniest thing I've read in a long time! I was imagining a sort of dog-sled buggy(without the snow)...but when you got to the part about yelling "SIT!" ---hee hee! I would've loved to see the looks on everyone's faces.

Molytail said...

Three dogs, 2 adults & 4 small children, none of them mine, promptly sat. *sigh* ROFL *grin*

I can totally picture this LOL

Diane Shiffer said...

"burgeoning Houdinis" oh my gracious! hee hee ha!

but the question is: did your children and odg sit? lol.

that is a great story☺

Diane Shiffer said...

oops... DOG not odg *blush* i do know how to spell dog, really i do;)

A. said...

I just learned what ROFL means. So I'll join Molytail on the floor.

Allison

Happy Elf Mom (Christine) said...

Oh... funny *now* maybe. My word!!

Ganeida said...

Yes, well. Even the dog had *selective hearing*. Thankfully somebody had the wit to grab the stroller & restrain the dog until I could reach them & read the riot act.

Sandra said...

You painted a great picture. I love these stories!

Anonymous said...

I absolutely love the quote! ROFLMHO

Coming from a family with three cats, I think that the quote is so appropriate - cats can catch rats, mice and rabbits, but what do dogs do, apart from bite?