Jackie Boy & Total Validation Training
Short Fiction by David Sky
Mae has learned to approach the farm hand carefully, jumpy fella, fully twenty yards away giving him fair warning of her approach, calling - Mickey?
Mickey facing out at the front pasture sipping coffee and raises a hand amicably without turning around, sipping from his coffee cup, his long hair as usual a tangled rats nest hanging down his back.
Mae stands over him looking down at at the pasture just stubble where Bill’s Blue Heeler races around at fantastic speeds this early spring morning through a thin mist laying low on the ground glowing softly pink in the early morning light. She says - I want to ask you a favor?
Sure, Ma, anything? Mickey says not looking up still watching Freddie literally running around in circles below them slicing paths through the thin veil of mist.
Well … for one, you know you can call me, Mae, right?
Well Mickey why do you call me, Ma, or Mom?
Cause that’s what you are, Mae, a Mom.
She laughs a little, says - yea OK well not anymore my kids are grown and scattered to the four winds.
Ah, Ma, you know that don't change none of what you are.
Mae never was quite sure what the hell Mickey was saying and always had a sense of just let it go but also of not being able to let it go, either - OK, she starts then, kicking herself a little - so why don’t you call Bill, Dad, can I ask?
Still sipping coffee both of them now watching Freddie like some energizer bunny non stop racing around, Mickey says logically - Well Bill’s not a Dad really he’s a Husband and just feels awkward calling him, “Husband” but that’s what I call him in my mind. So I just call him, “Bill”. I think what we call things is important, I guess, maybe to answer your real question.With all due respect, Mom.
Well, Mae presses on – my husband and I really appreciate the job you’re doing, first of all, and we thought since you had said you always had dogs and trained them, maybe you could train Freddie, he’s a bit of a handful, you know?
Both of them watching the handful being a handful knowing Freddie would still be running around long after the morning mist burned off. Mickey says philosophically – you know, Ma, what amazes me about Jackie there is that he expends far more energy than he consumes and does it perpetually tell you what it’s a full on miracle if we could do that globally, that would be like some Free Energy technology, did you ever think of that?
Mae is thinking, “Jackie?” But she let’s it go – I never did think of that, Mickey, but, yea, point. So do you think you could kind of take … him on, train him, since you have experience?
Sure, Mickey agrees - I'd love that, finally rising up off the ground his coffee cup empty looking at Mae – but that training that was in another life now I’d have to train him a new way according to this life and I’ll need to keep him with me 24/7 for a while and train him my way. I have an idea of how to do it. I’ll call it, “Total Validation Training”.
Mae is thinking giddily, “Is it OK to keep him with you 24/7? Is that a real question OMG YES PLEASE!” but says – certainly, Mickey, whatever you think is best, thank you. But Mickey doesn’t respond he’s staring off into the copse of evergreen between them and the road eyes glazed over looking kind of lost – Mickey, she asks tentatively – Mickey, are you okay? She looks off where he is looking now as if to see what it is he is staring at but there's nothing but some trees - What do you see is there an owl in the trees?
Mickey startles back into recognition – ah, me what no I saw no not an owl really saw … everything … just everything … happens a lot these days. Apparently, Timothy Leary was mistaken. You really can do one too many acid trips - Laughing heartily – that was a joke, Ma! Mickey adds.
Mae thought it wasn’t exactly a joke and always wanted to glance away from the gaze of his steely blue eyes that seemed to look right down into her and always felt invasive somehow and she found herself saying out loud what she was in the middle of thinking - feels like you’re looking into my soul sometimes, Mickey, laughing a little nervously.
Mickey smiles now broader and with his eyes softening some – well yea, Ma, sure, cause I am. Where else would I look?
Mae let’s that go and asks – so you will, then, take on Freddie?
Sure, I will – handing her his empty coffee cup – if you’ll take that back up to the house, I’ll start right now, no time better than the present. He’ll accompany me in my chores from now on and he turns and yells down at Freddie – Jack! Jack! Jackie Boy! Jack! Jack! Jackie Boy! Jack! Jack! Jackie Boy! In a rapid staccato and Freddie wheels around instantly and charges up the hill at them and Mickey slaps his chest with the palms of his hands rapidly in cadence with the – Jack! Jack! Jackie Boy! repetition and Jackie leaps up from nearly ten feet out and flies into Mickey’s chest and Mickey spins around absorbing the impact holding now Jackie Boy in his arms saying – that’s my GOOD! BOY! O such a GOOD! BOY! who’s my GOOD! BOY! seeming to enjoy Jackie Boys very animated and very wet doggy kisses.
Mae shakes her head and walks back to the house, thinking, “Jackie Boy? WTF is that?!” and telling herself, “don’t ask, just don’t ask”.
Total Validation is simple just what it sounds like nothing esoteric or complicated about it. Constant validation for just being. Dogs and children respond to it instinctively, adults not so much, many anyway, having gone so long and so profoundly invalidated, most unfortunately. It just requires directing love energy at the trainee. Jackie ate it up having had his fill of “don’t” and “stop it” and “goddamn you spastic little fucktard for the love of God man settle down” and etcetera. He knows exactly what those words and phrases mean just as would any pre-verbal child know. When he is sitting next to me, I lash out at him with a vigorous head rub, “who’s my GOOD BOY!” or scoop him up in my arms and hold him tight exchanging wet kisses, “such a GOOD BOY! yes you are a GOOD BOY! And OMG old Jackie Boy is responding perfectly giving, may I go there? Yes total validation to my Total Validation Training. He is an A+++ student!
How’s the training going? Bill asks, finding us eating lunch together in the barn.
I validate Jackie Boy with a head rub for eating his lunch – GOOD BOY! Jackie GOOD BOY! And he glances up from eating happily, ecstatically almost could say, utterly validated. To Bill, I say, See it’s working great!
Bill sounds a bit confused – well, Mick, what’s the training, I mean you know, the training part of it all?
O this IS the training part of it, Bill, I say positively.
Ah … Bill hesitates a second … OK Mick OK. Just seems like you have to reward him for doing something not just doing nothing, right, like positive reinforcement?
No, Nope, I explain, not really, that’s not at all what Total Validation Training is about. Total validation so yea the opposite of what you said, Jack gets constant validation without restraint or measure, simply for being, that’s the whole point of it.
Bill sounds a little uptight now – seriously what about the training part?
I don’t dig uptight so deflection is called for here – yea we’ll get to that, Bill, of course, that comes later first Jack here needs full immersion in validation for a while lon -
Bill interrupts me – Mick have you actually trained dogs before?
Well, I explain - like I told Mom -
Right ... like I told her that was in another lifetime ago and now I have to do things differently so technically sure could be said that “I”’ have never actually trained a dog in my life (which makes me laugh and think it’s an inside joke about being reborn cracking myself up was an only child, you see, what can you do?) Bill I can tell doesn’t know what to say now?
I say – you have to give the training and Jackie Boy here some time, Bill. Don’t prejudge. He’s coming along beautifully. I have nothing but confidence in old Jackie Boy, rubbing Jackie's head affirmationally.
Bill turns and walks out of the barn without saying anything more then turns back around just outside and asks me – you know his name’s not Jackie, right?
Sure, I say, sure I know that, Bill. I got this, man. No worries. He’s in the best hands.
Bill and Mae find Mickey cleaning out the goat stall and ask Mickey for a moment.
What’s up, guys? Mickey says, Jackie Boy by his side looking back and forth from them to Mickey. He’s a good bit calmer now. Mickey says excitedly – excuse me and directs himself at Jack – go play Jackie Boy go play! And Jack tears off into the goat pin racing around. Sorry, Mickey says – needs to burn off some energy, you know, cattle dog and all.
Well, Bill begins – Cattle dog exactly what we want to talk to you about.
Yes? Mickey says, looking at Mae. You OK, Ma, he asks her?
Mae nods affirmatively lets Bill talk – so, Bill says, thing is we have good friends who have a big cattle ranch and we’ve decided to give Freddie to them. They can actually use a Blue Heeler, you know, like make real use of him let him do what he is made to do -
Mickey interrupts – sure that’s great this little goat ranch is not enough for old Jackie Boy, he’ll love it there.
Mae speaks now – so you’re OK with it?
O yea, Mickey says sincerely, yea I already knew why I wanted to totally validate him, you know, it will be a little hard on him, I was thinking, moving there and all but he’s in great shape for it now.
Mae and Bill look at each other significantly. Bill says – OK Mick but you couldn’t have known about it cause we didn’t think of it until yesterday when Mae was talking to Anna and it came up?
Mickey says – excuse me a sec turning to call Jackie Boy back, under his breath mumbling, “yea never ends well when you tell them you’re psychic, so many assumptions” turning back to them as Jackie races up next to him and accepts a pat on the head. He tells them – it’s just logical, right, he’s a cattle dog and this is a small show goat ranch so I kind of figured something like this would happen and kind of figured best thing I could do is get him centered in himself so someone that knows how to can then train him to do the cattle work and all.
Mae and Bill both smile at this. Bill says – well that makes all the sense then, looking at Mae who shakes her head affirmatively adding herself – yes makes all the sense in the world.
Mickey smiles too now – yea, thank you for saying, adding –you have to really BE before you can really DO. Jackie Boy will knock it out of the park no doubt in my mind.
