It is 6:15 am and I’ve been awake for over an hour.
I’m as excited and nervous as a six year old on Christmas morning. Why? Because
this morning I’m getting a puppy! She is due to arrive at 8 am. She is a
beautiful 5 month old Golden Retriever who we only met last night. Here’s how
it happened…
Yesterday around noon Pam got an email from my niece
Christina informing us that she had just had a conversation with a friend who
was in the midst of several life changes that had forced her to give up her
puppy. When Christina discovered that the dog was a Golden Retriever, she
immediately thought of us. Several e-mails and phone calls later, there we were
in our family room last night being introduced to this adorable bundle of
energy with the highly problematic name of Siera.
It has been 16 months since last we had a dog in our
home, but a full 13 years since we have had a puppy in our home, which is no mere distinction without a
difference. Although she is a dynamo of energy and curiosity, and in the midst
of the “everything goes in the mouth” stage, she is already house-trained,
already knows the “sit” command, already has been introduced to car travel, and
already uses and apparently loves her crate. In other words, her resigning
parents are better than her new ones will be!
Pam and I are nervous. As regular readers of this
space know, I have been engaged in a month’s long lobbying campaign to convince
Pam to get another dog. Persistence has paid off. But now that she’s about to
be delivered, we are both a bit overwhelmed at the prospect. Last night we sat
on the end of the bed trying to make the decision. Yes, it will be a huge
adjustment, a 24/7 responsibility which will limit our mobility, at least for a
while. Yes, it will be a lot of work. Yes, it will be a not inconsequential
expense. In this way, the decision to buy a dog is not unlike the decision to
bring a child into the world. The plus side of the ledger contained more
mystical, transcendent entries. Having a dog brings things like “joy” and
“life” to us. In our newly empty house, she will inject much needed noise and
activity. She will love us and be loved by us, a condition that makes any home
a happier place to come home to.
“-------------,”
(enter name here, suggestions would be appreciated) will change the dynamics
around here. She will give both of us something new to care for, something new
to nurture, something new to love. We will be made better as a result.
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