So, I finally built up the courage to go along to a local group meditation class.

I have meditated in a group situation before at a Sangha in Port Fairy that was excellent. So, I am no stranger to the practice.

But new to this session and the people, I go in and sit quietly, respecting the space and the reverence as others arrive.

The male guru sits at the head of the room, eyes closed, smiling, in silence, and I take my cue from him to settle.

Some regulars straggle in late and the female guru welcomes them in and apologises to everyone for the late start.

Then I hear the familiar sound of small irregular taps of dog nails on the wooden floor and I think to myself, “WTF!”

The woman comes in with her dog on a lead. I look up. She isn’t blind and doesn’t declare she needs an assistance dog.

The dog is a young lean dark energetic Kelpie. Why would any person think this kind of young dog will sit quietly for a whole meditation session?

The female guru asks the “group” if everyone is okay for the dog to sit in with the session. All affirm and nod. Is that really a “yes”, or are they succumbing to a gentle group bullying tactic? Or is the guru too cowardly to assert herself and set the boundaries for her own session?

Let’s just say that I am a “cat person”. So, I put up my hand and say, “No. I am fearful of dogs.” They don’t believe my quiet response and ask, “Oh, do you have allergies?” I say louder now, “I am fearful of dogs. Like some people are scared of spiders or snakes. For me it is dogs.”

The woman says she’ll have to take the dog home and will come back.

This session is off to a bad start for me. I feel like the leper of the group. As a lifelong introvert I didn’t want to stand out. I wanted to sit quietly and MEDITATE! All my former thoughts of melding harmoniously with this group of strangers now evaporate into incensed air.

What I don’t comprehend is the selfish, inconsiderate, audacity of the woman bringing a lively DOG into the session at all! As a regular she surely knows how meditation works: to sit still in silence.

It seems I wrongly assumed a meditation class was one of the last havens for cynophobics. Oh, I could rant on … but I will leave it there. I’ve paid for four sessions, so I’ll see how things go in my next session. Hopefully I can muster that loving kindness.