Have you ever tried to encourage someone by pantomiming what to do?
When we were babies, our moms would smack their lips and make the “Yum, Yum” sound when trying to encourage us to eat. As parents, we followed suit with our children. Lip smacking and flying the food around the highchairs. We pantomimed and demonstrated how to do lots of things—standing up straight, using utensils, skipping.
Skipping may have been my favorite. Watching my husband demonstrate how to skip was priceless. I wish I had a camera to record it for posterity. All our efforts were intended to use positive reinforcement to encourage imagination.
And then, not long ago, we got a puppy.
It was so easy to fall back into old habits. I found myself smacking my lips together while stirring up his food. The puppy didn’t need any encouragement, but I couldn’t help myself! It’s amazing how similar having a puppy in the house is to having a baby in the house.
Then came the potty training.
Training the puppy has turned out to be a little different from teaching the children. Although, just like with the kids, I reminded my husband repeatedly that we didn’t want the puppy (children) to feel bad about himself (themselves). He (they) were learning and were going to have accidents.
So I scolded the poop.
In an effort to show the puppy the preferred place to poop—outside—I scolded the poop he left inside. I also wanted to make sure that my husband got it, so I demonstrated the proper technique. With finger poised, making sure the puppy could see, I crouched down, wagged my finger at the offensive pile, and said, “Bad poopy . . . Bad poopy,” and put the dog outside.
The only thing my husband got from my demonstration was a good laugh, and he said when I did the scolding routine, I sounded like Yoda, that iconic Star Wars character. Now, I wish we didn’t have a camera.
Perhaps my methods were a little ridiculous. Or were they? After only a couple of weeks, there haven’t been any more accidents. Maybe we have an unusually smart puppy? I don’t have a real basis for comparison. The last puppy we had was years ago, so I don’t remember.
Some things I do remember are the wet nose prints that are now on all the glass doors and windows. The prints began to show up at ankle height and are moving up as the dog is growing. Maybe I should try scolding the dirty windows? Nah.
A better plan is to demonstrate how to clean the spots—to my husband.
So I explained, “You have to use a scratchy sponge first, and then go over it with Windex and a paper towel.” (This said with a Yoda voice to get the full effect.)
Clean windows are a metaphor for life. When your windows are clean, your vision is clear. Clean windows add a sparkling perspective. Clean windows enable you to see the world clearly. With clean windows, there is nothing blocking the view of what you need to do and what you can accomplish in life.
Just imagine.