It was six years ago today that Sophie and I met. It had been four days since Bruzer's passing and I was a complete mess. I couldn't stop sobbing. I couldn't eat or sleep or think. A "mess" is a vast understatement. But then, on the morning of the 26th of April, I got up and decided that I would not torture myself a moment longer. After a bit of research (Humane Society) I took off for the coast.
The moment I saw her I thought, "Ohhhhh! I hope she picks me!" Because in my heart I KNOW that it is they who choose us. NOT the other way around. She was in her very large kennel with her "roommate" and a woman who was sitting on the floor giving them cookies. I didn't think I stood a chance. When given the choice between a cookie and a stranger, what would YOU choose?
I watched for a few minutes, just taking it all in. The woman finally saw me standing there and asked would I like to meet one of them. I told her yes I would but after they got their treats. She said that they'd had enough; then she said "which pup would you like to meet?"
I pointed to Sophie (who, by the way, had been named "Silver Lining". What the hell??? What kind of name is THAT for a Dog?!). She put Sophie on a leash and walked her out of the kennel, gave me a handful of treats and handed her over. We then walked to an enclosure that had artificial turf and a bench on either end. She told me to spend as much time as I liked and when I'd made up my mind, to walk her into the lobby.
Being the smart puppy she is, she'd seen me put those little treats in my pocket and knew they were for her. She didn't make one bit of fuss as we walked into the enclosure. I sat down on one of the benches and asked her to "SIT". She looked at me with a blank stare, wagging her tail, waiting for a treat. I had to giggle. Cutest face EVER!
I spent about half an hour with her and then asked if she wanted to come home with me. By that time all the cookies were gone and still she followed me from one end to the other. I asked again. She wagged her tail and walked to the gate. I had my answer.
It's about an hour's drive from that shelter to our home. She rode the whole way with one paw on my leg. I was laughing and crying simultaneously. Mostly because I just KNEW that my Bruzer had a hand in the whole affair. Also because I could feel my heart healing as we drove.
From the moment she walked through the door, she was home. I knew it. She knew it. And I like to think Bruzer knew it too. She did not erase the pain of losing him, she merely made it more bearable for me. Hers was a sketchy past. Someone had found her living on the streets of El Centro, pregnant and filthy and starving. How she ended up on the coast is a mystery. One thing is certain: she was on her way to ME.
There isn't a day that passes that I don't thank her for coming to live with me. Each morning I sing her a song that says so. And she wags her tail and gives me kisses and I know she's grateful too.
Living with an Angel is about as good as it gets.
Sophie chose Joy.
Me too.
The moment I saw her I thought, "Ohhhhh! I hope she picks me!" Because in my heart I KNOW that it is they who choose us. NOT the other way around. She was in her very large kennel with her "roommate" and a woman who was sitting on the floor giving them cookies. I didn't think I stood a chance. When given the choice between a cookie and a stranger, what would YOU choose?
I watched for a few minutes, just taking it all in. The woman finally saw me standing there and asked would I like to meet one of them. I told her yes I would but after they got their treats. She said that they'd had enough; then she said "which pup would you like to meet?"
I pointed to Sophie (who, by the way, had been named "Silver Lining". What the hell??? What kind of name is THAT for a Dog?!). She put Sophie on a leash and walked her out of the kennel, gave me a handful of treats and handed her over. We then walked to an enclosure that had artificial turf and a bench on either end. She told me to spend as much time as I liked and when I'd made up my mind, to walk her into the lobby.
Being the smart puppy she is, she'd seen me put those little treats in my pocket and knew they were for her. She didn't make one bit of fuss as we walked into the enclosure. I sat down on one of the benches and asked her to "SIT". She looked at me with a blank stare, wagging her tail, waiting for a treat. I had to giggle. Cutest face EVER!
I spent about half an hour with her and then asked if she wanted to come home with me. By that time all the cookies were gone and still she followed me from one end to the other. I asked again. She wagged her tail and walked to the gate. I had my answer.
It's about an hour's drive from that shelter to our home. She rode the whole way with one paw on my leg. I was laughing and crying simultaneously. Mostly because I just KNEW that my Bruzer had a hand in the whole affair. Also because I could feel my heart healing as we drove.
From the moment she walked through the door, she was home. I knew it. She knew it. And I like to think Bruzer knew it too. She did not erase the pain of losing him, she merely made it more bearable for me. Hers was a sketchy past. Someone had found her living on the streets of El Centro, pregnant and filthy and starving. How she ended up on the coast is a mystery. One thing is certain: she was on her way to ME.
There isn't a day that passes that I don't thank her for coming to live with me. Each morning I sing her a song that says so. And she wags her tail and gives me kisses and I know she's grateful too.
Living with an Angel is about as good as it gets.
Sophie chose Joy.
Me too.
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