Excerpt

A LONG LIFE

On a warm July day in 2005, my dog Shempi and I were sitting parked under a large oak tree in Elk Rapids, Michigan. With the top down on our 1980 MGB, we sat quietly, not far from where Shempi, Joyce and I spent many memorable walks on the beach or wading in the warm summer waters of the Grand Traverse Bay.

Shempi loved the MGB. Her normal spot was in the small area behind the seats where she could sit and be eye level with the driver and passenger. She knew when she sat there, it would take her to a beach or a walk in the woods with mom and dad. On this ride, she took the passenger’s seat, as mom was not along. This time it was not to be a walk on the beach or in the woods. It would be her last ride in the car.

She sat on the seat peacefully staring at the leaves gently dancing in the warm breeze. In the near distance, we could hear children playing on swings or swimming in the warm summer water. As I combed my fingers through her mane and neck, shoving the black, white and beige hairs aside, tears dripped from my sad face. “I don’t want to do this”, I cried. Maybe with different medicine, or with some gentle care, we can get more time. I lied to myself, thinking that her life could go on forever.

Joyce would take off work early to meet me. The veterinarian said he could get us in whenever we were ready. When I was ready? How is anybody ever ready to lose one of the best friends they ever had?

“I really don’t want to do this”, I cried again. My legs were shaking as if I were running a marathon. Looking into her glassy eyes made me weep even more. Her eyesight had all but left her a month earlier, but she knew exactly who I was and where we were. I put my hand on the shifter and punched the accelerator a few times as the MGB purred. Shempi looked up at me, and then put her paw on my hand. “PLEASE!” I yelled, “Don’t make it so hard!” It was her way of letting me know that she was ready. Like it or not, it had to be done. Not for me, not for all the friends she had made, but for her. She knew it was time to say goodbye. I wondered if I had earned the right to call myself a good master. My heart felt heavy as I prayed. “God, take me instead”, I thought. “It is too hard.” I wondered how I ever got so attached to this dog?





OLD FOLKS AND PUPPY DOGS

It was a gorgeous, warm spring day. I had an assignment that involved inspecting a car at the Portage Acres, a retirement home just south of Onekama, Michigan. The home was tucked-away just off M22 atop a large hill. From the parking lot, where the car to be inspected was parked, I could see most of Portage Lake and Lake Michigan in the distance. As I inspected the car, I let Shempi out to sniff. After a few minutes, my inspection was complete. I looked around for Shempi and noticed her near one of the apartments where an old woman was sitting in a wheel chair on the grass. I could see the woman had a blanket over her legs and was making motions. I feared for the worst as I thought Shempi was bothering her. I ran to the woman to get Shempi and tell her how sorry I was. As I drew near, I stopped when I noticed that two other people standing by the front entrance doors were laughing and clapping. The old woman in the chair had thrown a stick that Shempi had picked up only a few feet from the wheel chair. Shempi brought it back to the chair, holding the stick straight out of her mouth. This way she was able to get it to the woman’s shaking hand over the top of the blanket. With the stick in her hand, the woman tried her best to toss it far. Being old and feeble, she could only throw it a few feet. Now half a dozen people cheered as if it was tossed a half mile!

I walked over and made sure all was ok. One of the nurses on the grass near-by said this would be the old woman’s finest time in years. By now, Shempi was sitting along side the wheel chair and being softly caressed by the old woman as her hand hung at her side. I wondered if the old woman had owned a dog in the past. I felt proud to have the time with her and the others. We vowed to come back, but life goes by so quickly. A few months later, we drove past the place but did not see anyone outside. I decided to leave the good memory as it was.