For many years, I was told that I needed some younger friends as all of my close friends were much older than I. I thought about it briefly but finding new friends is more complicated than buying a new dress, so I did nothing about it. Actually there are many reasons why I behaved this way; most of which originated in my childhood. I found it very difficult to accept and return friendship. One Christmas this changed, more or less against my better judgment.
My daughter, who is a great animal lover, brought me a black-and-white Border collie which was about to be euthanized because she killed cats, and anything else that wandered by. We had raised and trained dogs for many decades and I had changed untrainable dogs into wonderfully responsive friends.
This looked like a challenge and I wasn’t sure I wanted to accept it. My girls were grown and gone and I was content with my life. I did not need a skinny, nasty dog with a steel pin in one leg, but if I didn’t take her, she would be dead within a week. I could never live with that.
It didn’t take long for me to establish that she no longer was the alpha dog. I was the boss. From there we proceeded to one of the best friendships I have ever experienced.
I was somewhat worried that she would be mean with my daughter’s baby, but the first time he whimpered for a bottle, Princess herded both my daughter and me to the baby’s side. Take care of the baby she told us. When he entered the terrible twos, she would sometimes look at me as if to say “save me” when the toddler tyrant pulled her tail.
My daughter said you could carry on an entire conversation with this dog. Dogs, like humans, have varying degrees of intelligence and this one was smarter than a lot of people I have known.
One afternoon, while visiting my daughter where Princess loved to play, she came over to me and asked to go home. She had many ways to convey her meaning, including staring at my purse. She knew my car keys were there. Once she was sure that she had my attention, she would herd me toward the front door.
I became worried about her because she wasn’t acting up to par but she was getting old in doggie years. However, a short time later, it became obvious that something was wrong so I took her to the vet. The worst possible diagnosis made me realize my friend would leave me soon. She had cancer and it had metabolized in her brain. I took her home for a few days but she let me know that she couldn’t go on so I took her back to the vet. I have done the same for many dogs but this was the hardest thing I ever had to do.
The vet sent me a condolence card with the poem “The Rainbow Bridge.” I recommend it for all animal lovers. It will make you cry but it will also make you feel better.
One of my favorite pictures of Princess is where it has always been. I still say good morning to her occasionally and wish I could see her once again, but she has left me with many good memories after teaching me the meaning of true friendship
