Evolution

When I was a teenager, I loved going for bike rides with my best friend, Miss D. We had one route in particular that we rode over and over again. The one drawback was the dog. That evil, spawn-of-the-devil dog. It was black, it had a fearsome growl, and it liked chasing girls on bikes. We were terrified of that dog. As we approached the house where it lived, we would begin to speed up, then we sped down the rural road as if our lives depended on it, which we were certain was true. There was usually a lot of screaming and barking until we rounded the corner and the demon pursuer turned to head for home. Now we were safe and could enjoy the rest of our ride in carefree peace.



I don't know if the demon dog started the whole thing, but I have been scared of big dogs for years. (I can't imagine why!) They're not the least bit cuddly, they smell bad, they're dirty, and some of them want to jump up on you or lick you or maybe, I don't know, bite your head off. Once I was married and had kids who wanted a dog, I decided it was time to get over my fear and we got our own dog. He was a puppy when we got him, and it was even me who decided to get him. The kids named him Spot, and they loved him and played with him until he got big and they got used to him. At this point, they began to forget to feed him. They went days without paying him any attention. I had no idea how to 'play' with a dog, much less the desire. I wanted to be responsible and take proper care of the dog, but he was for the kids to play with, not for me. And he was kind of big, and energetic enough to scare me. Nothing on the same level as the demon dog, but still, I was less than comfortable getting too close. Then Spot got sick and died, and I thought, well, it was a good try. We're done.



A few years later, I got talked into it again. This time the dog was already grown up, and we were familiar with him. His family couldn't keep him anymore and we adopted him. I actually really liked this dog. He was soft and, though not quite what you could call 'cuddly', he was quite huggable. We played with him and took him for walks and everything was grand until......oh no, we got used to him. We were apparently not the right family to OWN a dog. We should be, at most, dog RENTERS. The dog suffered from a horrendous lack of attention, which made him completely hyper whenever he did happen to get noticed. And to top it all off, he liked the kids so much that when our handicapped kids climbed over the fence, he didn't bark to alert us to the problem; he bit holes in the fence so he could FOLLOW the escapees!! Finally, having decided that this dog must have also been mentally challenged, I said that I would deal with handicapped people, but that the dog had to go.



Yay!! We were a dog-free family! We were loving our cats and had no thoughts of getting a dog. Then something happened. We babysat my sister's house dog for two weeks, and I found that I loved having him around. I loved the way he followed me everywhere I went and sat at my feet and slept at the foot of my bed. I loved to play fetch with him and cuddle him (he was CUDDLY!!!)....I even loved to take him out to pee. When he went home, I missed him. I decided that someday I would spend the money and buy myself a little house dog.

Someday came sooner than I expected. My sister called offering me the first chance to buy one of her two house dogs. This one was a puppy, and she was too busy with her human baby to take care of this doggie baby. She offered me a steal of a deal, and I convinced my husband to let me take advantage of it.

I am a changed woman. I love my dog!! I named him Mr. Bennett, and I love him! He likes to lick my feet, and it feels like a mini-massage, so I love it, too. He smiles at me all the time. Yes, he really smiles. He lives in the house, but the cats get kicked out. He follows me wherever I go, and he gets blue when I'm gone for a very long time. I've been learning to cut his hair and trim his nails myself, because I love him and want to be his main caregiver. I hold him and hug him and kiss him, even when he desperately needs a bath. What has happened to me?

I have evolved. I am a dog lover. Who knows what could be next? I may even become a mushroom lover! Or maybe not.