Thursday, May 26, 2016

Tess

We jokingly named her Tesla, because I told Ariel that would be the only way he would get one. But really, she was just our adorable little Tess.

We had her for almost exactly two years.

She did not live nearly as long as she should have.

A few Friday afternoons ago she ran across the street to see the neighbor's house, something she'd done a hundred times. But our neighbor was down the hill. So, not finding her, Tess turned around to come back to me. The guy in the vehicle didn't see her running down the steps. Probably, in fact, had no idea what he'd hit.

She died instantly.
And we miss her desperately.

It's amazing how some pets become such a part of every part of our lives. Now, at night when I get up to go to the bathroom, no one follows me. There is no one to lick clean the tuna cans and yogurt cups. Every morning I will still roll up the shade at the front window, but now there is not really a need to - there is no puppy there to look out at the road, awaiting our return in the afternoons.

She died doing what she loved: running outside. She literally did not know what hit her, and for that I am so grateful. She didn't even make a sound when it happened. I am also so grateful that she didn't suffer. I am having a hard enough time getting the image of the incident out of my mind without the added horror of seeing her die in pain.

Thankfully, too, although I saw it coming and saw it happen, she was on the opposite side of the car from me, so I didn't see TOO much.

I will also probably never forget the absolute devastated reaction of my youngest, who was home with me at the time, when I told him.

She was my baby girl. I'd been home with her the first three months of her life and did most of her training. And she adored me.

She was brilliant. She knew the difference between, "Bring me your rope," and "Bring me your ball." She knew how to "Go to bed," and wait, drooling, staring at her food, until I told her it was "chow time."

But unfortunately, she didn't know what "No!" meant when I was screaming at her, trying to get her to stop running down the neighbor's stairs.


She is missed.



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