Remembering the Keys

Most every morning, my wife and I walk our dogs.  She always has the keys to let us back into the house. I got in the habit of not bringing them. Lately, when we get back from our walks, my wife does a training session with our youngest pup. I have had to interrupt those sessions to ask for the keys to let the dogs in the house. For weeks I have had the intention of bringing my own set of keys to let the dogs in. For weeks, I have failed to remember to do. Until yesterday.

Weeks ago, I started with the intention: I need to remember to grab my keys on the way out. I’d let the dogs out, and wouldn’t remember until we got back from the walk. Over time, I’d become aware that I forgot to bring the keys earlier and earlier into the walk until yesterday, I remembered before we left. I have observed this pattern in other areas of my life: Shutting the back door all the way in the winter when I’m letting dogs out. Throwing the burnt match that was used to light candles and incense away after I’m done meditating. Remembering to practice what I know about operant conditioning and the rules of my agility handling system instead of defaulting to sloppy training/handling. Staying mindful during meditation. Absorbing what I’m reading in the Dhammapada and other texts.

What I believe I am learning, and what I would like to share with you is this:

1.      Start out with intention

2.      Catch yourself in old habits

3.      Repeat until intention turns to consistent action

I read somewhere that becoming mindful of your actions and doing things with intentionality is like walking: Each step is the process of falling forward and then catching oneself, and then repeating the process until you get where you want to go.