There are many important facets to my life- things that have helped to mold me into the person I am today. A very special one is about to disappear and I want to speak about it- her.
I believed myself to be a cat person. (And a tiger person. And a dolphin person. And a horse person...all those common animals that so many little girls fall in love with...)
Never did I dwell on dogs. They were funny animals that made messes and were cute when they were puppies...and there my opinions stopped. I enjoyed seeing the neighbor's dogs, but so many I met were poorly trained- they'd jump up on me, drool on me, bark at me; which of course, explains my occasional distaste for the creatures.
When we moved to Nebraska, my Dad decided it was time to get a dog. He had grown up on a farm with dogs- they were special creatures to him. Seeing that we were going to get one, I resigned myself to the fact and began to get interested in the process. (After all- it was an animal...and I love animals.)
My Mom was NOT pleased with this new development. She did not like pets. She was afraid she'd have to care for it. But my Dad was firm on this. (Thankfully!) And assured her that we girls would be responsible for the dog- feeding, watering, walking, picking up after, bathing and training.
I was really lonely in Nebraska. As a 13 year old, it was hard enough to go through the process of moving- but I no longer had even the ocean to play in. I missed the beach. It was hard fitting in at church- one girl took a distinct disliking to me because she thought I was trying to steal another girl's friendship- truthfully, neither of them wanted anything to do with me at the time. I decided my best form of defense was to become a shadow. Church was not the place for me to find friends, just then anyway.
In the homeschool group, I loved playing soccer. But that only happened once a week. Fitting in was very hard and a very slow process.
I remember our first trip to the pound. Dad had told us that we were NOT getting a puppy. An older dog would be great since we were probably only keeping it for a couple of years. My sisters and I hoped to change his mind. After looking at the cats and kittens, I slowly followed my sisters and Dad into the dog hall. It smelled. Bad. I was unimpressed with the idea of cleaning up after one of these creatures.
I looked at every dog, thinking up problems for each. Reasons we shouldn't get them. Suddenly I spotted her! She was beautiful. A very alert, young Austrailian Shepherd. She didn't have a tail- just a 3 inch stub gracefully covered with fur- similar to a deer's tail. Her triangle ears were tilted towards me and her warm brown eyes sparkled.
"Hello." I said and she instantly began to wriggle in excitement! There was a wooden slab sticking out from the wall, a sort of bed-off-of-the-floor, and she proceeded to bounce from the board to the floor- tirelessly. Sticking my fingers through the chain-link to pet her I marveled at her downy soft fur. I liked this dog. If we HAD to get a dog- I wanted it to be this one.
Turning to see the next dog across the way, I saw a mom dog with pups. Excited, I knelt to try and touch the puppies through the fence. That was when the dog I'd been admiring barked. As soon as I looked at her, she stopped.
"Is she jealous?" I wondered. I tried it again.Turning my back to her, I spoke to the other dogs and she barked until I turned around. Pleased that the creature actually wanted my attention, I pet her again. "Wait." I told her as I went to get my Dad and sisters. She seemed to understand.
They were engrossed at the far end of the hall with a German Shepherd- Husky mix named Teddy. "Isn't he cute?" "I think he's perfect!" "And it's a boy dog- Dad won't be the only boy anymore!"
"Well, he's nice, but I have one I want y'all to see! Please! She likes me." I was immensely enchanted with something liking me. It felt as if no one did (besides my family).
Urging them back down the hall, I could see "my dog" watching me as we drew closer. She gave equal attention to all three of my sisters and my Dad. I could tell they were impressed. But they still liked Teddy. How was I going to convince them that she was perfect?
"We're not making a decision today." my Dad said. Panicked I looked at "my dog". I prayed. I prayed hard.
No comments:
Post a Comment