Life Lessons From A Pound Puppy

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Ted Geisel

It’s been a very sad few days for our family, our dog passed away a couple of days ago. When our 6 children were young, they begged my husband and I for a pet. We really didn’t have any money to speak of, but we thought that a family pet would be a good addition to our family. We fired up our computer and began our search for an affordable dog. Our son Tomas looked for quite a while and came upon a little black and white puppy named Sarah. She was only about 5 weeks old, a border collie shepherd mix and she was quite affordable. The kids pooled their resources to help pay the $35 fee for adoption. We made our way to the Polk County Animal Shelter to pick up our new pet. 

We had no idea our little pound puppy would impact our lives in a meaningful way

When we arrived our little dog was covered in fleas, ticks and poop. Even with all the ickiness, she was absolutely adorable. We loaded up in our car, the kids took turns holding the little puppy that was so tiny, little did the kids know that this puppy would provide many years of love and companionship that would make an indelible mark on their lives through their childhood and into adulthood. We didn’t keep the name Sarah, our son Tomas decided to name her Dawn. We had scrolled through name after name for dogs. For some reason, Dawn was a name that spoke to him. In case you are wondering, Tomas got to choose the name because he had saved the most money for the pet. The other kids were perfectly ok with this turn of events. 

Our pound puppy gave us many years of joy

Dawn gave us much joy for almost 16 years. She was so smart, hyper and loving; she fit into our family very well. She lived with us through deaths, storms, injury, life changing circumstances and everyday life. As she aged, she did slow down a little but her loving spirit remained. Back in August, Tomas was deployed for the military, he was going to be gone for an extended period of time. I shared with him that it was likely the dog would not be with us when he got back. The vet had told us that it was wonderful that she had lived as long as she had, but the probability living much longer was not looking good. Last week, our worst fears for our pet were realized. She was rapidly declining. Night after night I sat with her comforting her during her worsening illness. The night she crossed the rainbow bridge, I held her paw and told her that it was ok to rest, we loved her and she was the goodest girl we could have ever been blessed to call our pet. 

The loss of our pound puppy was heartbreaking

Our beloved pet was gone. When I say it broke my heart to tell my son that was deployed that his pet that he adopted so long ago was no longer with us, it did break my heart into pieces. Our twin boys grieved her greatly, they played hours and hours with her, gave her walks and just loved her to bits. Our daughters did the same, she was without a doubt a much loved pet. When the time came to bury her, we gathered around the room and shared our memories of her that touched us over the years. Tears were shed, hugs were given and multiple goodbyes were uttered. In my grief I thought about the lessons she taught us humans. After all, we could learn a few things from our loving pets. 

• Always find a reason to wag your tail side to side with joy

I know that we humans don’t actually have a tail but what gives us joy? Often we focus on the big picture when in actuality it is the little events that add into our soul bucket to give us joy. What kind of tail wag can make the ordinary extraordinary? Find the little joys when the big picture is a bit much. 

• Some days it is ok to run with abandon

I am a huge fan of Pride and Prejudice, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read the book and watched the movies (the 1995 Colin Firth version is my favorite). The heroine Elizabeth Bennet often took long rambles in the country to clear her mind or to find solitude, and sometimes she ran with abandon for a little joy. Our Dawn often just ran like crazy with the biggest smile on her face. It was delightful to see. 

• Find reasons to have pure love for those around you

There is nothing more wonderful than seeing a dog look at you with absolute love in their eyes. There is no judgment, no expectations (but petting and treats occasionally), just true companionship and a desire to be around your people. 

• Roll in some grass

Dawn always rolled and rolled in the grass like it was the greatest thing ever. We are in our little square technology bubbles often, the dwelling place seems to be division and a manufactured reality. Perhaps just touching a little grass will help.

• Forgive and love with abandon

It always amazed me how much Dawn forgave. We weren’t cruel owners by any means, but we had the occasional accidental step on the tail, sometimes we had to reprimand her for getting into things she shouldn’t and there were times we had to leave her for an extended period of time. There were a few moments of sadness, but complete love and forgiveness afterwards. Dawn’s love and forgiveness for us was always wonderful.

Pets make an indelible mark on our lives

We miss her terribly, her raspy old lady barks, her tippy taps, her love of pets and her unwavering loyalty until the bitter end. Even though her passing has been quite difficult, our family is very thankful for the blessings of pets. God created them as companions for us all the way back in Genesis. Adam named them all from the giraffe to the tiny tit mouse, they all had a purpose. As we sifted through almost 16 years of pictures with our beloved Dawn my husband shared a simple saying: “All his life he tried to be a good person. Many times, he failed, for after all, he was only human. He wasn’t a dog.” Bless You Dawn for the wonderful memories.