A wise person had once told the girl, “The road to true love is never easy.” And, they were right. It hadn’t been easy. The girl didn’t mind because she was happily in love with her Buckeye. Their relationship was finally everything she knew it could be and then some. They had moved in together and lived across from Wrigley Field. Pure magic.
Sometimes, at night, as the girl waited for her handsome Buckeye to come home after a long day’s work and an even longer commute, she would get a little bit lonely. She thought about how to remedy this and knowing her Buckeye’s career path was only gearing up, she decided to get a dog. She had never had a dog in her whole life. The great thing about being a grown-up is that if you want a dog, you get to have a dog. The girl was not impulsive in nature so she researched and pondered and then researched and pondered some more. Eventually she decided she wanted a Bichon Frise because small, white and fluffy seemed like perfection to her. On the day she drove to a suburb to meet a slew of Bichons, she felt very confident ‘her dog’ would find her. And, she did.
At first the girl thought she wanted a boy and that’s all she focused on. She started to get frustrated with how energetic and bitey they all were and wondered if she would leave empty-handed. Instead, she opened up her expectations and picked up the first female she could find.
It was love at first sight.
The girl couldn’t explain it but this sweet little Bichon-Poodle was meant to be hers. She was gentle and loving. She weighed a whopping 3.2 pounds. She was perfect.
The girl brought her home and their adventure began. It wasn’t always easy or smooth, but the girl quickly forgave her White Fluffy Dog because, well, she was white and fluffy. She was magic.
Five months after the White Fluffy Dog came into her life, the girl had to go out of town. She left for a few days and put the White Fluffy Dog’s care into the hands of her Buckeye. She didn’t think twice about it before she left but she should have. Once she returned she realized something had changed. Her White Fluffy Dog still loved her, but now, she loved the Buckeye even more. At times this would frustrate the girl because she wanted to be loved best, but she got over it. This dramatic shift in loyalty helped a lot when the girl became a mom. She was so focused on raising her young Buckeyes, she was grateful that the White Fluffy Dog had the Buckeye to look out for her. It also helped that the White Fluffy Dog adored the little Buckeyes. She loved babies, pacifiers, bottles and diapers. She was always gentle with the little Buckeyes and over the years, tolerated a lot of hands-on rough and tumble play with them. She adjusted to being a big sister with great aplomb.
Life changed drastically when the Littlest Buckeye turned 18 months old. At this time the girl learned he was severely allergic to the White Fluffy Dog. As much as the girl loved her White Fluffy Dog, she did what she had to. The White Fluffy Dog went to live with her Buckeye’s parents. The White Fluffy Dog lived with them for five long years (extremely long if you ask the Buckeye’s father).
As the LB grew and changed so did his immune system. On a whim when he was seven, the girl decided to have him tested yet again for his dog allergy. She almost didn’t believe the results. Her White Fluffy Dog could come home. It was magic all over again.
Having her White Fluffy Dog again brought wholeness to the girl’s heart. The girl could handle all of her White Fluffy Dog’s quirks because of this wholeness. Yes, the White Fluffy Dog had entered her golden years and was certainly set in her ways, but she was still magic. She still was that same dog that ran towards you when you were hurting, sick or broken. If the girl was sad, her White Fluffy Dog would lay down next to her. The White Fluffy Dog never ran when faced with distress, rather this is when she shined. There are no words to convey what this meant to the girl. ‘Everything’ is a good one to start with. It pretty much meant everything to the girl.
The girl had more time for her White Fluffy Dog as her little Buckeyes weren’t so little. She walked her every day. The girl loved these walks. The girl fed her, brushed her and made sure she had her medicine. While the White Fluffy Dog still loved the Buckeye the best, she appreciated all the love and care the girl showed her. She followed the girl everywhere. The magic continued…until it didn’t.
The White Fluffy Dog had lived 13.5 well-loved years when her body finally started to give out. The girl was heartbroken. The day came that the girl and her family had to say goodbye to the White Fluffy Dog. She had cancer and was bleeding internally. The White Fluffy Dog was ready to go. When the White Fluffy Dog’s last moments arrived, the girl bravely held her in her arms. The girl reasoned they had started out together, that it was only fitting that they were together when it ended.
The space the White Fluffy Dog has left in the girl’s home is enormous. It is quiet in a way that is unsettling. The girl now walks around with a White Fluffy hole in her heart. Her only comfort is knowing that love eventually prevails.
After all, she learned this lesson from the best…
