Whenever we visit Ellen, she seems to find solace in patting Pumpkin’s head as it lies on her lap or in fondling Greta’s ears and guide dog harness. “Beautiful,” she murmurs, stroking Pumpkin, giving us a glimpse of the younger Ellen who recognized canine sweetness when she saw it. Although she often smiles when she interacts with Greta and Pumpkin, Ellen, during some visits, displays the mood... Ellen, like my parents, had loved dogs all her life and, the volunteer coordinator assured us a year ago on our first visit, would welcome some friendly company, especially if that company arrived at the end of a leash and with a wagging tail. It doesn’t matter that she can’t recognize us or that much of her former life remains a mystery to us. What matters is that, for the hours we spend together, she finds comfort from a friendly canine presence and that my husband and I are able to,... In the tenuous and sacred web of life that connects us to one another, Ellen needs a dog, and we have two to share. As we left the facility after visiting Ellen recently, I realized that there would be other autumn afternoons for those long walks and that my local Starbucks wasn’t likely to run out of coffee and biscotti before my next visit.
Then came guide dog schools to train the dogs, and the great people who raise the dogs before heading off to the guide dog school, the puppy raisers. I can see a time pretty soon where the guide dogs harness comes with a chip in it that will help a blind person navigate even down to the slightest millimeter. Yes, the person you are speaking with can see you, but you can’t see them, but to a guide dog, it can be quite fun, and a way for him to see those family members and friends that do not live near you. With technology being what it is these days, and everyone having a camera and GPS system on them at all times, I am sure the future of guide dogs will be interesting. For years, guide dogs have been tasked with leading blind people around. Guide Dog work is not all work and no play. Guide dogs already have GPS chips in them in case they get lost, so they can be found by satellites. So, yes, my guide dog does FaceTime. Does your guide dog FaceTime. With a GPS system built in to his harness where I can click a button and have a bluetooth earpiece in, I could find the door on my own, if GPS directions get down to it. That would be quite a nice world to live in. Now that we have covered the...
