Rules Are Stupid
My Dog is My Guru
I’ve been thinking a lot about rules lately.
Years ago, I was in the Peruvian jungle on ayahuasca and I asked God—or consciousness, creation, my own mind, who knows—a question: “What am I NOT allowed to do?”
The answer came immediately: “My son, do anything you want.”
Anything? “Literally. Enjoy this realm. But do it respectfully.”
Holy shit. Maybe we made this way more complicated than it needed to be. And strangely, dogs have brought me back to this lesson again and again.
We love rules for ourselves and our dogs. Sit. Stay. Heel. Don’t pull. Don’t bark. Some rules protect us. Some create order. And some are just plain stupid. Because underneath all the rules is something much more important:
Awareness. Compassion. Boundaries. Respect.
I spent about a decade supervising packs of 25–45 dogs. Eventually, I stopped watching only for obedience. I started watching the conversations they were already having. Space. Pressure. Invitation. Warnings. Play. Boundaries. And I realized something:
Dogs don’t need us to control everything.
They need us to pay attention. That lesson has moved far beyond dog training for me. Bubba keeps teaching me that I can't control the dog coming around the corner. I can't control his first emotional reaction. I can't control everything that happens to me either.
But I can pay attention. I can breathe. I can set a boundary.
I can move. I can come back to myself.
Maybe that’s what being a Peaceful Alpha actually means.
Not controlling everything. Remaining present when everything isn’t under your control.
I made a longer video about this one because it couldn't fit into a 30-second reel. It’s called Rules Are Stupid.
And maybe the dog you think you’re training…is actually training you.
Jesse
My Dog Is My Guru
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