Pets
It was one of those perfect summer days. A day where you can see the heat shimmer off the pavement by 8 am.
Her mother was a firm believer in free range children, so by 8:30 she found herself outside with the whole day before her. She was happy in the carefree way only children can be.
Donut in hand, she stood in the front yard contemplating the shenanigans of the day.
Playing is serious work for children.
As she was scanning the field behind the house for the playmates that were usually out at this time of morning also, she saw instead a dog.
He was golden haired and he glinted red in the sun. He sat down before her and gazed quietly.
She did the thing that comes so natural to children. She shared her donut with him.
They were fast friends just like that.
The rest of the summer passed in a blur. Every day when she woke up, there would be the dog. Her parents said she couldn't keep him, but she couldn't run him off and they let it be.
They were inseparable during waking hours. He would sleep beneath her window at night.
One day, the phone call came that her grandmother had died. She worried about the dog the entire time they were gone.
The joy she felt when they pulled up to the house in the wee hours of the morning and the dog was there, illuminated in the headlights, was indescribable.
She bounded from the car and the dog wiggled with joy, licking her face and knocking her down. All the pain of losing her grandmother was gone because of the presence of the dog. She loved that dog with her whole being.
Her father had to return to his ship and deployment after the funeral, so he was gone again the next day.
Two nights later, she had a nightmare that the dog was killed. The dog wasn't beneath her window as he usually was. She thought perhaps he was under the house as it was getting cooler at night now.
She told her mother about the nightmare over breakfast and her mother pish-poshed it saying she just had death on her mind due to the recent loss of her grandmother.
She took her extra toast and went outside to look for him, and she found him lying dead on the lawn. He had been shot.
Her heart broke into a million pieces in that instant. She ran to her mother for comfort. Kids have this unerring belief that their parents can make everything better...even death.
Her mother said, "I'm so sorry baby. When I called the landlord and told him the dog had to go, I didn't know he was going to shoot him right here. I thought he'd take him off into the woods. I told you, you couldn't keep him."
She broke a little that day. The truth is, she never did heal. She still misses that dog with all of her being some days.
Her mother was a firm believer in free range children, so by 8:30 she found herself outside with the whole day before her. She was happy in the carefree way only children can be.
Donut in hand, she stood in the front yard contemplating the shenanigans of the day.
Playing is serious work for children.
As she was scanning the field behind the house for the playmates that were usually out at this time of morning also, she saw instead a dog.
He was golden haired and he glinted red in the sun. He sat down before her and gazed quietly.
She did the thing that comes so natural to children. She shared her donut with him.
They were fast friends just like that.
The rest of the summer passed in a blur. Every day when she woke up, there would be the dog. Her parents said she couldn't keep him, but she couldn't run him off and they let it be.
They were inseparable during waking hours. He would sleep beneath her window at night.
One day, the phone call came that her grandmother had died. She worried about the dog the entire time they were gone.
The joy she felt when they pulled up to the house in the wee hours of the morning and the dog was there, illuminated in the headlights, was indescribable.
She bounded from the car and the dog wiggled with joy, licking her face and knocking her down. All the pain of losing her grandmother was gone because of the presence of the dog. She loved that dog with her whole being.
Her father had to return to his ship and deployment after the funeral, so he was gone again the next day.
Two nights later, she had a nightmare that the dog was killed. The dog wasn't beneath her window as he usually was. She thought perhaps he was under the house as it was getting cooler at night now.
She told her mother about the nightmare over breakfast and her mother pish-poshed it saying she just had death on her mind due to the recent loss of her grandmother.
She took her extra toast and went outside to look for him, and she found him lying dead on the lawn. He had been shot.
Her heart broke into a million pieces in that instant. She ran to her mother for comfort. Kids have this unerring belief that their parents can make everything better...even death.
Her mother said, "I'm so sorry baby. When I called the landlord and told him the dog had to go, I didn't know he was going to shoot him right here. I thought he'd take him off into the woods. I told you, you couldn't keep him."
She broke a little that day. The truth is, she never did heal. She still misses that dog with all of her being some days.
I can understand why this would hurt for years. It's such a sad story and so not right.
ReplyDeleteIf it evoked emotion, it is a good story. That is the goal of a writer. They say, if you aren't feeling it while you are writing it, then your audience isn't either. :)
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