The Misunderstood Goodbye

I am preparing to say the final goodbye to someone who has held a treasured spot in my heart for the past 16-1/2 years.  This individual has been a trusted companion, a friend, and a confidant.  She has been by my side through changes in jobs and homes, through broken dreams and dreams realized. She has been a true example of the nature of unconditional love. She is Olivia Sue. She is my dog.

I decided to look for a dog when I first moved out on my own after college. The house I was living in seemed too empty and needed an injection of joy and life. Our family dog was a mid-sized black dog and I wanted to get a small white dog. I began doing research on small white dogs and narrowed my options to a bichon or west highland white terrier. The spunk and look of the Westie won me over and I was on a mission to find one. I had already chosen the name Olivia when I went to the breeder to meet four female puppies. I sat on the floor a few feet from the puppies and called out “Olivia!” One puppy turned and pranced straight to me. I scooped up all three pounds of her and took her home that day. 

The last 16-1/2 years have been filled with great memories with Olivia. She has the Westie spunk in spades. In the recent months, her health has begun to fade and she spends the majority of her time sleeping.  She can no longer go up the stairs on her own. She takes regular medicine for arthritis and belly troubles and can only eat special food. I feel like the veterinarian’s office is becoming my second home. She is certainly fighting to stay here and I am doing everything I can to fight for and with her.

When I think of the inevitable day that is coming, I already cry. (Who am I kidding, I have been crying about that day since she was 3 months old.)   I hear society say, “Get over it, she’s just a dog.” But there is no ‘just’ about a dog. A dog is about unconditional love and acceptance. I will never get over Olivia, nor do I want to. I used to joke that she may not be my daughter but she is my dog-ter. She has been God’s messenger, showing me daily that I am a creation worthy of love and teaching me how to love those around me.

Update: Olivia entered into her eternal rest on June 16, 2014. Her final hours were filled with beauty and love. I pray that God provides me with the strength to be able to share that story one day.

Let's Start At The Very Beginning: Picture Book Edition

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”

Nearly everyone is familiar with this opening line from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities. The opening of a book sets the tone for the story and has the potential to instantly hook the reader. Here are the openings to some of my favorite picture books. Which ones hook you?

“Before light—while the stars still twinkle—Papa, my brother John, and I leave our cabin and take the main road out of town, headed to work.” More Than Anything Else by Marie Bradby

“Mike Mulligan had a steam shovel, a beautiful red steam shovel. Her name was Mary Anne.” Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton

“One day, a young bear was nosing through bushes when he saw something lying on the ground. He looked at it with curiosity. He sniffed at its tiny marks. Then the bear took it in his teeth and brought it back to his cave.” A Story for Bear by Dennis Haseley

“A happy school of little fish lived in a corner of the sea somewhere. They were all red. Only one of them was as black as a mussel shell. He swam faster than his brothers and sisters. His name was Swimmy.” Swimmy by Leo Lionni

“Mr. and Mrs. Mallard were looking for a place to live. But every time Mr. Mallard saw what looked like a nice place, Mrs. Mallard said it was no good.” Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

“Forevergreen Forest was a quiet peaceful place until Bruce, a great shaggy brute of a bear came wandering up out of a canyon one day.” Big Bad Bruce by Bill Peet

“Elizabeti had a new baby brother Obedi. Elizabeti watched Mama take care of him and she wanted to care for her own baby.” Elizabeti’s Doll by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen

“Elijah McCoy was born in Colchester, Ontrio, Canada, on May 2, 1844, to George and Emillia McCoy, former slaves who had escaped from Kentucky via the Underground Railroad.” The Real McCoy: The Life of an African-American Inventor by Wendy Towle

“For as long as any letter could remember, Vowels and Consonants had been enemies.” The War Between the Vowels and the Consonants by Priscilla Turner

“I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there’s gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst

“The place is Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. The year is 1999. On May 11, after months of careful research and planning, Holly Evans launches vegetable seedlings into the sky.” June 29, 1999 by David Wiesner

“There is a house, a napping house, where everyone is sleeping.” The Napping House by Audrey Wood

“It was late one winter night, long past my bedtime, when Pa and I went owling.” Owl Moon by Jane Yolen

 

And my favorite story beginning of all time comes from Shrek by William Steig. (Yes, Shrek was a book before it was a movie!)

“His mother was ugly and his father was ugly, but Shrek was uglier than the two of them put together.”