The Lap Dog
Senior year in high school is a time of infinite uncertainty for most kids, and I was certainly no different when I was that age. At that time I knew everything and refused to listen to anyone. I was alienating myself from the majority of people in my life because I was about to take off out of town for college and had no intention of looking back. I was also pushing everyone away because for many reasons my childhood was ending. I’d lost both of my childhood dogs and the family life was strained.
Things changed when we brought her home. She was supposed to be just visiting. Our cousin wanted us to try to move on and knew that we would never be able to return the pile of wrinkles we’d brought home with us. She was sleepy all the time like most puppies, but unlike most she was incredibly clumsy. It seemed she needed help to get anywhere. She was drawn to me and I was drawn to her. She was never going back to her litter, because we couldn’t let her go.
She went without a name for several days because we couldn’t seem to find a good fit. She had more white on her face and feet than most dogs of her breed. She was always being held because we all knew it wouldn’t be an option forever. You see, she was a boxer, and based on her parents, would likely grow to be 60 lbs or more.
Four days after her arrival we knew she had to have a name and the family was split. She had been sleeping in my bed every night, and as long as that didn’t change I could live with anything. The family voted. My dad and my sister wanted to name her Lily, but my mom and I wanted to name her Sadie. We couldn’t decide so we were going to have our waiter pull a random name out of the hat. Sadie was entered twice as was Lily. Just before the waiter returned we all decided that the name Emma should be entered once. Against the odds, our little pile of wrinkles was now named Emma.
At that time I only had a twin bed and as she grew she continued to sleep in my bed, despite the cramping. She also never seemed to realize she was growing. She got stuck several times under furniture because she didn’t understand she had grown. She continued to demand to be held and sit in laps.
I left for college and missed her terribly. I was mainly concerned about my little, or not so little, Emma would forget me. That seems silly, but its true. I had a fiance who I lost and fell out of love with my school so I returned home to finish college.
I was blessed to find my lap dog had not forgotten me, and even as I write this is curled in my lap. All 63 lbs of her. She has had some health scares over time as have I, but once a lap dog, always a lap dog.
