I attended a workshop presented by Nicole Donovan. We were told to bring pictures from our lives and she led us through exercises with them. Over the next few Fridays, I will be sharing these bonus pieces of writing.
Of All the Dogs I’ve Known
There have been many dogs over my lifetime.
Shayna
Yaya
Baby
Sadie
Libby
Gertie
Stormie
Sophie
Mitzi
Buddy
Sam
Jake
Maggie
Lots and lots of dogs.
Baby was the first dog I have real memories of. She was a Shih Tzu with a crooked mouth; her tongue hung out all the time. Always dry. She wasn’t the smartest, but I loved her.
Libby jumped into my dad’s car outside the elementary school when he went to vote. She used to smile at me. Only me. She was a black Lab who enjoyed lying out in the sun and cracking pecans.
The rest were annoying and don’t need to take up room on the page. I could have done without most of the dogs on the list. Especially Maggie.
Then Miriam showed up in my life. She’s the only dog who ever mattered and probably can never be replaced. She’s my best friend and, some days, my only reason for getting up.
Like most love stories, we weren’t looking for each other. Well, she was an eight-week-old puppy. She wasn’t looking for anything. I never expected to get a dog because of all the bad experiences with those other dogs.
Her face popped up on my Facebook feed. My friend’s daughter’s dog had puppies, and they were trying to find homes for them. It was love at first sight for me. The most adorable face I had ever seen. She was the one.
The dogs who came before didn’t have her personality. She has 88 different expressions, and you never have to guess what she is thinking or feeling. I can narrate her days based on her facial expressions and loud sighs.
Besides Libby, none of the dogs who came before were as smart. Miriam knows more words in the English language than I thought a dog’s brain could hold. In fact, we have to spell some words around her. She also tries to figure out how things work. She’s curious.
None of those dogs loved me like Miriam does. I’m her favorite human. When the family walks into the house, she runs past everyone to get to me.
She can read my energy. She knows when I’m anxious. Sad. Sick. She lies on top of me or close by my side so I can feel her warmth and love.
Each day is better with Miriam in it. I try not to think about the day that will come when she will no longer be here. For now, I make sure she lives her very best life each and every day.
Bonus Pics:
I don’t have digital pics of Baby and Libby, so I took pictures of them that I have in frames in my office area. Not the best pictures, but you can see Baby with her tongue out and the one picture we got of Libby smiling at me (that’s my leg in the picture).
