Dogs

That One Day

That one day, way back in 2004. For some reason, even though I didn’t have any pets, I walked into Petsmart. They were having an adoption event.  I saw her. In a temporary pen, surrounded by a bunch of other puppies. But she stood out. It was her eyes, and her smile. I picked her up.  I put her back down a few minutes later and walked away. For some reason, I turned to look back. She was standing up watching me walk away. I went back. That was almost 13 years ago. She weighed maybe 3 pounds. She weighs 70+ today.

 

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Lula Belle Galat, My Pretty One (photo by Geoff Galat)

 

 

We’ve been through a lot together. A sister 2 years later. Another a few months ago. A divorce. The sale of my company. A romance and a wedding. A move across the country for a really shitty job, another one back for a really good one, and three houses in the course of one tumultuous year. Oh, and those two moves? 5 days each way in a car, because she’d be terrified to fly. Bright side? I wouldn’t have been to Flagstaff, Amarillo or Little Rock, much less twice in a year, without those journeys.

 

She’s been there for me every day, still with those eyes, still with that smile. Over her 12+ years, I’ve traveled more than 3 million miles. Every time I have come home, she greets me like I’ve been gone forever, jumping, spinning, rubbing up against me. But not too much, because she’s always been a little bit aloof. She loves to be loved, to a point. She loves to cuddle, to a point. She also loves her alone time. She oftentimes will just go to another room, or outside, or even to the bed she has in my closet – her private safe place. Maybe because she was abandoned young, and almost never made it. Maybe because she has her own independent streak a mile wide.  And she is very regal, somewhat “above the fray”.

 

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First Day in our new home in Georgia, 2016. Regal (photo by Geoff Galat)

 

I call all my dogs my “favorite”. I tell them all they are the “best doggie ever”. And I am not lying, they all are. But Lula is my first. I tell FMG all the time that “Lula knows everything” because deep down inside, I think she really does. She knows right from wrong, she knows happy from sad. She knows me better than anyone. She knows she hates thunderstorms and fireworks.

 

Today is another “That One Day”. The last three weeks have been brutal. She woke up on a Friday with a bump on her side that seemed weird, like maybe a bad bug bite. 3 weeks later, it was nearly the size of a volleyball. Sarcoma. Cancer. As I write this, she is undergoing surgery. I watched her walk away with the veterinary technician to her surgery a couple hours ago. She first put her butt down and anchored, as if to say “no way I’m going back there, dude”. Then I started to walk with her. She looked at me. With those eyes. And that smile.

 

As always, comments and shares appreciated.

 

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7 thoughts on “That One Day

  1. Written from a special Lula place in your heart. So many years, so much love. Touching.

  2. Great article. It’s amazing what a dog in your life can do to your view. Happy to have my guys. And thanks for sharing a look into Lulas.

    M Sreenivasan | 6506462452 | msreenivasan@gmail.com

    Sent from my iPad

  3. Our pets are amazing. They love us no matter what. They don’t care if you’re a CEO or a janitor. They don’t care if you didn’t get that promotion. Lula knows that you love her and at the end of the day that’s the best gift you can give. That is one very lucky and loved doggie. You’ve given her an amazing life. I hope you get a little more time with your buddy. Best of luck to Lula.

  4. I’m crying right now. We’ve been through this scenario a few times. It never, ever gets easier, maybe because each one is so individual and so embedded in our hearts. Sweet kisses to you, DeeDee, the girls and sweet Lula.

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