Last year I decided to put my first agilityparson Tilda (Pandas granny) to sleep at the age of 15 the same week as our nationals, SM (The Swedish Championships). I don’t know what I was thinking still going there. After breakdowns to tears on the course walk I put myself together and did a run, then I had to go home again. I couldn’t torture myself.
I realized more than ever that a competition, championship or not, is NOTHING compared to the journey we do together with our dogs. All the hours of training, playing, walking, cozing… on the way. All the new friends we meet and different amazing experiences they give us. In some way, I believe that was the biggest fear of taking the decision. The fear to lose the memories. It sounds silly when I type it. but I believe the memories felt closer at the time… still having her around. News is… I still have the memories, and they are still as strong. 🙂
My first team leaders for our first World Championships taught me something that I have since always had in focus. “-Don’t forget to enjoy the moment and the fact that you actually are there!” Them words made me feel unstoppable because whatever I did I had always collected and enjoyed the moments. I just couldn’t fail.
When I last year found out that our next Nationals were going far up north in Sweden I decided to give it a break. Not even bother to try to qualify. Instead, we decided to use our money to go down south in Europe to collect more memories and meet some newly found friends and hopefully make even more. Get some summer sun instead of Swedish mosquitos and maybe had a zip or two of the Slivovitz, our Czech friends introduced me for last summer.
This trip is …. not about the competition, it’s about the journey. Today we pack, tomorrow me and my best friend Fredrika will take the car down south in Europe, with Moravia Open as a destination with our three white terriers and collect more memories.
I have an aim to post in the blog regularly about our trip to Moravia Open… and hopefully, that will be a reality.