plutherus

On the way to work this morning, I was attacked by a horrible vicious dog.

Well, OK, it growled at me.

More specifically, I was passing by a van, and it came around the corner of it, charging, growling, with its teeth bared.

Yeah, I was a little taken aback.

My reaction, though: I moved forward - toward the dog, extending my hand and bending my front knee. I moved, without thinking, into a position where my hand toward the dog was just to the side of its mouth, and I turned slightly to the side, bring my other hand up toward the back of its head.

By then the owner was already calling the dog off and apologizing.

But if she hadn't, I had dropped immediately into position where if the dog had pressed the attack, it would have gone harmlessly off to my side, hurting neither me nor it, and ready to be helped along if need be with my other hand.

This is the first time I've ever had to use the actual martial part of what I've learned in Aikido in a "real-world" situation. I was pleased that, overall, my reaction was pretty appropriate. I kept my energy forward while moving to the side. If the encounter had lasted any longer, I probably would have tenkaned to face it as it passed.

The dog didn't bite me, didn't even snap, and probably wouldn't have. It just scared me. But my embarrassment over being startled was completely dwarfed by my pride in my reaction.

Two years ago, I think my reactions would have been significantly different.

I did notice I leaned forward a bit, though. I'll have to work on that. But it's hard to get that low. I mean, the dog was a lot shorter than any of the people I work with at the dojo.

And now I really wish I could go to the seminar this weekend. I feel like I've gained some insight into what it is we do there, and want to practice with other people. (The two-legged kind. :)

Anyway, the encounter ended peacefully. The dog immediately jumped back to the woman who called him back, I took a more friendly pose and offered my palm but it wasn't interested.

I compare this to the fight I lost badly right when I was starting Aikido (I was attacked by a vicious bookshelf. It won.) Yeah, it seems like I did learn something after all. Thanks, Sensei!