Meeting Olivia's cousins' new dog, Kaiser.
Earlier this month, we met Joel (Ryan's brother) and Laura's new dog, Kaiser. It reminded me of how amazing and therapeutic animals can be. Autumn has been such a perfect fit for our family. As I type these words, Autumn is faithfully at my side at 1 in the morning (I'm having awful insomnia again.) I truly feel like I have the best kitty in the world. I grew up with the world's greatest dog and have been wanting to do a post about him for some time. My dad found him and brought him home to our family when I was only 4 years old, so the beginning of the story is best told by him. . . .
Actually, I didn't find him.....he found me. For, you see, I believe it was an amazing act of Divine intervention that brought us together.
Almost everyday I went for a lunch hour run. Once in a while, I just simply didn't feel up to it, and I wouldn't go. But on that fateful day in June of '82, even though I really didn't want to, I decided to go. So, I headed out on the dirt road west of the shop where I worked. I had gone one mile to the first intersection when I heard a dog barking. I looked up ahead in the ditch to find a small white and gray puppy. There were no houses nearby, and I had run that stretch many times....so I knew he must be another "abandoned" dog....dumped by someone that just didn't want him. Looking closer, I also discovered two little kittens. I remember saying out loud.... "If you're still here when I come back, I'll pick you guys up." So, I proceeded down the road. Then I remembered a stray dog that we found by the shop a few months earlier....a cute puppy that the boss named "Tyrone". He became the shop "mascot". We enjoyed "Tyrone" for a while at work until he was unfortunately ran over one evening in front of the shop. I vowed to take the next stray that I found. So... what was I thinking? "If you're still here when I come back?" No.....I wasn't going to chance it.... today was the day! So, I turned around and sprinted back to the shop to get the truck. When I sped back, they were still in the ditch. I took all three animals back to the shop. The puppy was shaking uncontrollably....scared to death....but at the same time, he seemed so concerned about his two friends....so, I could tell he had a good disposition. We gave the kittens to a neighbor, and I claimed "Tyrone" for myself! That's right.... it somehow seemed appropriate to name him Tyrone II. My boss had a cousin who was a Vet in a nearby town, so after work I took Tyrone there to get him checked out.
The next day after work I couldn't wait to pick up Tyrone and take him home to the family. My kids were so excited to pet this wiggly, cuddly, soft and furry puppy. It definitely was "love at first sight". They made a bed for him on the back porch to sleep in after they literally wore him out.
Tyrone
A really long story short......he was one of the best things I ever did for my kids...he was right in the middle of everything we did....always in the way.....and we loved it! Every birthday party....every Christmas morning....every family meal....he was there.....for almost 14 years! It wasn't just "chance" that he found me.....I almost didn't run that day, and if I'd started running even five minutes earlier, he might not have been in that ditch. And, fortunately for me, his owner chose that moment....that day....that location.... to dump the Greatest Dog in the World!
To Be Continued. . .
He was there to witness all of the changing fads like stone washed denim, french rolled jeans, perms, parachute pants, ridiculously high bangs. . .and he never judged me at all. LOL!
During my senior year in high school, Tyrone's health began to decline. Honestly, I don't remember what was wrong, but his age was catching up to him. He struggled to perform the simplest of tasks and would often just sit and stare into a wall. We soon made the decision to have him put to sleep because the quality of his life was quickly declining. On March 9, 1996, I was working at Best Cleaners. I came home for lunch and I remember saying my good-byes. Boy, that was a tough day. I wasn't ready for him to be gone. I had so many experiences ahead of me that I wanted to share with him. I couldn't remember a day in my life when he wasn't there. I came home that evening and I was hoping everyone had changed their minds. Maybe the vet decided that he would actually make a full recovery and be fine. But, I came home to a very melancholy house. . .without the jingle of his tags, the warmth of his eyes, the softness of his fur. We lost a part of our family that day.
Fourteen years later. . . I still think about Tyrone. He taught me a lot about unconditional love. My life would have been so different had we not been blessed with this dog who someone had literally thrown away. I wrote a poem about him soon after he died (but, what didn't I write a poem about in those days?) I won't share the whole thing. The last verse, however, still rings true today:
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