Forever Tainted

I wish every day could be like yesterday – minus the temper-tantrum I threw out of nowhere in the morning, and the missing dog we had to chase down in the evening. Both instances aside, and we had a brilliant day from start to finish.

We woke in the morning and played a game of Scrabble over coffee. I had a little fit (seriously am not sure when or how I became such a poor sport, but beat the shit outta myself immediately afterwards for it just in case!), he went to the store, we finished our game (he beat me by 3 points), and we both hopped in the shower. As I got ready, he packed us some snacks. I made a couple of protein shakes, packed a book, some Band-Aids (just in case), some water and the Yatzee and we took off through the trails in the mountain across the street.

We hiked for a few hours through the lush green bush, before we finally sat down to rest/snack. Along the way, we came across a very touching ‘Missing Dog’ poster and stopped to read the same. There were far less people on the trails than we expected to see. The day was hot, but cool in the shade of the trees. It made for a hike as good as any work out! Our very last stop among the trails were ‘Pickles Bluffs’, an outstanding lookout point near the top. And I tell you, the pictures below do this place no justice. There is no better place on earth than my very own backyard!

~*~

~*~

~*~

~*~

~*~

~*~

Anyway, we got home to learn the puppy was missing. I dislike most dogs. But this dog, he isn’t any dog. He’s my mom’s last companion, the last thing to make her smile. And a great reminder of what a compassionate person she was. As such, he’s become a piece of my heart. I was mortified. My brother had left the back door open – he’d been gone all day. My father assumed Lars and I’d taken him with us on our hike. There are a lot of places a 5lb Chihuahua could go in a place like this…

We were lucky enough to find him as we posted signs throughout the neighbourhood. Some lovely lady had picked him up earlier, from running down the middle of our street all on his own. She left a note in the bakery at the end of my street, so when I went in to leave my own sign, the lady shouted that he’d been found, ripped the note of her register and handed it to me. I don’t think I’ve been so relieved in my entire life. <3 He’s great little toy dog; weighing a whole 5lbs, cost my mother a fortune. We worried he may have been eaten by an owl or hawk, or he’d simply have been stolen. Thank good for decent people. And how ironic, Lars and I read about another puppy gone missing through the trails just a short while earlier. I hope she finds her way back home too.