We’re So Proud Of Us

Reyna had SAR Sunday morning – only three sessions left before we wrap up for the year. They’ll start sessions again in January, but I don’t know if Reyna and I will participate. It all depends on how she’s doing.

Yesterday went very well. Our session started at 7:00am, but the trainer made us wait until 7:30 because it was still too dark to see in the woods. And he very nicely didn’t want me and Reyna tripping over every stick and falling in the gullies just to go find someone. When we finally started out, the trainer made a few suggestions about the best way to approach the exercise, based on terrain and wind conditions. What he apparently forgot was that telling me doesn’t mean a whole lot – I go where Reyna wants to go, so if he want us to take a specific path, he needs to talk to her. We started out following the trainer’s suggestions, but Reyna kept getting annoyed by a fence that was blocking her from a slightly easier route. She decided she was done with that and veered off to find a new path. In fact, she found a very nice, wide path. We followed it for a ways, and then she turned around and trotted back the way we’d come. She took me into an old family cemetery, sniffed at a couple of headstones, and then trotted over to our missing person. After our “You found her!” party, I told Reyna to “take me home.” (Note: “Take me home” means different things to Reyna, depending on where we are. During SAR sessions, it means that she needs to lead me back to the truck. When we’re in the woods behind the house, it means that she takes me to the pond where we always play before we go back to the house.) She took us through the woods – using a shortcut of her choosing – straight to the main road. As we walked towards the vehicles, I saw the trainer working with another team. He left that team and met us, looking worried. He seemed very confused, and glanced at his watch.

Trainer: What’s wrong?
Me: Nothing. We found Megan, so we’re headed back to the truck.
Trainer: You already found her?
Me: Yep.
Trainer: Already?
Me: Yes. We started out the way you suggested, but Reyna didn’t like it, so she found an easier path to take. We overshot the cemetery at first, but then she went right back to it and found Megan.
Trainer: Really?
Me: Yeah.
Trainer: That should have taken longer.
Me: Um, okay. Why?
Trainer: That was a very advanced exercise.
Me: Okay…
Trainer: It should have taken Reyna longer than 10 minutes. It was a very hard search.
Me: Heh. No one told Reyna that.
Trainer: Take her home. She’s done for the day.

Reyna and I strolled back to the truck, smug expressions on both our faces.