Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro: 25oC, warm, sunny, and clear sky.
It’s Saturday and I’m up early. First, I grab a strong, pure black coffee at the Portuguese bakery and then head off to work out at the park.
Sometimes, instead of staying at the bakery, I ask for a takeaway coffee and go sipping the coffee on the way to the park to not waste time.
When I go to the park at a normal person’s time, like 8:00 or 9:00 in the morning, there are usually many dog owners with their dogs, forming little groups where they repeatedly meet one another every day. I have lived this; I was in this situation 15 years ago with Bruce and Petra, the boxers.
I used to repeatedly go to the same park with the dogs and, after some time, got to know the people there. We became friends and sadly, in some ways, lost the real reason for walking the dogs.
It seemed more important for the dog owners to meet their friends and gossip than to really have quality time with their dogs. I was part of a group. We would have barbecues on Friday nights or sometimes on the weekends.
Nowadays, I prefer not to engage in lengthy conversations with dog owners. I don’t want to feel obligated to be a part of a group and be controlled by it. I love dogs; they are like angels from heaven, often sent to Earth to help humans become better people.
Understanding this, we should do as much as possible to make sure that the dogs we have really do have a good life and reciprocate the unconditional love that they give to us.
When I went to the park, four or five dogs voluntarily came over to meet and greet me, to get to know me. People have noticed that I have a certain way with dogs and animals in general. I have three pupils who are dog owners, and whenever we have a class, their dogs come near to where my pupils are sitting. Whether it’s that they can feel positive energy from the class, I’m not saying that it’s 100% because of this, but it happens, and it’s funny.
When I was working out in the corner of the park, various dogs came over to greet me. The owners acknowledged the reciprocating kindness that I like to give to their dogs, so everything was good. What was different from the usual was an old man sitting near where I usually work out. I pretended not to see him and set up my TRX straps on the post. I began to skip and, every now and then, swapped between skipping and using the TRX.
This old man started doing yoga exercises while I continued with my workout. After about half an hour, he slowly approached me to talk. He was around 70 years old and looked extremely thin and frail. He had small acupuncture band-aids on his forehead.
He spoke slowly and articulately. He asked if I was a personal trainer, but I explained that I was an English teacher, not a personal trainer. He then asked if I was Brazilian, which I’ve been asked millions of times before. I told him that I was English. We had a pleasant conversation for about five or ten minutes and then went back to our exercises.
When I had finished, I packed up everything in my rucksack and left. As I was leaving, he came over once more to wish me a good weekend. He jokingly said, “God save the King,” which I thought was strange and funny at the same time.
It was nice to interact with that kind old man. Perhaps he’s gay or simply lonely, or maybe he just wanted someone to talk to. I felt that he was sincere in his intentions and not just another stupid person with ulterior motives because there are a lot of them out there.
When I arrived back home, I took a shower and then went to Copacabana because I had some things to do there. I walked there and back. When I got back, I finished off the half bottle of cheap Merlot that was left over from last night, saw a film, and had something to eat with Yasmin.
In bed by 11:30 pm.
Thank you.
Thanks for taking the time to read this blog post. Explore my other posts and share your thoughts in the comments section.
Richard
