Nearly 17 years ago, I remarried. A single mother with three daughters, I had rebuilt my life emotionally and financially. It was a long, long, haul.
A phone call changed my life. My brother called me, chatted awhile, then got to the point of his call (because he is not known for being “chatty”)!
“Do you remember my neighbor?”
I do, I replied. I remember that he moved out of state, married and has a child. This is not what a single woman wants to remember!
“He called me and asked for your phone number, what should I do?”
Well………..what has changed?
I gathered the current info, and said “thank you for not giving out my number without talking to me first.”
Fast forward, the ex-neighbor and I married, combining our two families into one. This is referred to as a “blended family”, though it didn’t blend as much as “collide”!
My children were grown, my youngest a freshman in college, but his children were CHILDREN!!!
My girls were fine with his young children, though “raising another family” is not the norm, thinking perhaps that I was unaware. As a mother, I was grateful for their young ages, I felt their acceptance of me and our new life together, would be easier.
I could not have been more wrong.
They were kind, respectful, but guarded. Cautious. Little eyes looked up to me, and I recognized that look from my own girls years earlier. indescribable anguish and hurt.
How do I make this new house their home? Three months after we married, we bought an eight week old puppy! We chose our little Lhasa Apso together, as a family. Each child spent time with “Hoosier” individually, loving him, playing with him, and trying to teach him to be a “good boy”!
Looking back, I will say that one little fur-ball could not solve all of our problems, in fact, he caused a few of his own! But, there were more squeals of laughter and giggles than ever before! Dirty paw prints, spilled water bowls, hidden dog bones under our bed pillows, all gave our house the warmth it had lacked. Our brand new house became a home, and our brand new union became a family.
Not without challenges, but there is only so much a pup can do!
Time, years have passed. My “second” set of children are now grown and on their way….but Hoosier is still here, watching over us and loving us well.
Buying this little puppy has been the best decision ever, for myself and for the family. My grandchildren now look excitedly for the dog when they arrive, before they look for us!
After 16.5 years, Hoosier’s running out of time, stage two kidney failure, blind in one eye, and deaf. Still, he’s our “watch dog”, and loves us unconditionally. At his last Vet’s visit, the Veterinarian suggested we consider “Hospice Care for your Senior Canine.” Staggering thought, that it was time for this…
Time was running out, we were getting closer…
How in the world can you take the rhythm out of a beating heart?
We want him to be pain free, rest well, and be at peace.
P.S. Hoosier was the BEST ever, can’t fathom having another dog……..I’ve had the best!
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Love the story, heart felt and true. Many memories with Hoosier our kids and our grand kids. Hard to believe that one little dog could bring so much life and happiness to so many people but he did and always will. Thank you for sharing the journey of our amazing family and this little guy we named Hoosier.
Thank you Jon, for your kind words and always encouraging me to keep going….whatever I’m up to!