Mt. Pleasant Classical Academy

SK invited two brothers over to our home today and I went over to pick them up. SK and I went into their home and I met their dog Lucy. What a sweet dog, who greeted me as a friend, leaning her side into my legs so I could scratch her side and gaze into her loving eyes.

My heart melted; a long-lost friend gazed back at me.

In the car the brothers exclaimed that they were really shocked with how Lucy reacted to me. Evidently their pit-bull normally growls at the newcomer, barks a bit, and then is reserved toward them until their next visit. They had never seen Lucy react in such a friendly manner to anyone.

She must have sensed that inwardly I need a dog; that I am a dog-lover who has gone way too long without a dog by my side.

MK would be thrilled for us to have a dog. DH would greet this news with severe reservation about any animal coming into our home. Perhaps I should tell him that the Christmas present he is giving me this year is a dog. I know, Christmas is past, but I don’t consider a new kitchen TV used by everyone in the family as my Christmas present.

A dog?

I’ve had 5 dogs in my life; each very special. Sgt Pepper was my first dog. A Siberian Husky who had a short life however he was my dog and I so remember playing with him even though I was only 3 or 4yo. Then there was Sparky, a mutt from a farm, who I grew up with, my dog from age 5 to 21. Yes, he lived a long, long life. Then the month after we married Benson, a Great Dane who stood 39″ at the shoulders came into our home as my dog and my first baby. Little did I know then but I learned valuable parenting skills through the obedience training classes I took with Benson. At age 4 though he flipped his stomach, something that can happen with large chested dogs, and died shortly thereafter. I was devastated and swore I would never get a dog again. Such pain. Then a man tried to break into our home one night and I changed my mind. Alex, a German Shepherd, came to us from the Monks of New Skete, and was my next dog/baby. At age 4 he was hit by a speeding car in front of our home as we played ball. A few months later we welcomed Oscar, a German Shepherd, home and that same month I learned I was expecting SK. Things between SK and Oscar were never wonderful; so when a friend suggested that Oscar move in with her dog, and the two got along wonderfully, I accepted her offer. That was 6 years ago.

6 years without a dog. Amazing. Over the 6 years I have met many dogs, played with my friends dogs and always walked away thinking—a dog is nice but so is life without a dog. Less dirt in the home, no doggy dirt to pick-up outside, no barking while I’m on the phone, no scratches on the woodwork, no kennel to find when we travel, but never have I had a long-lost friend gaze back at me like I did today.

Where do I find my Lucy?