Lost Dogs

Pet

Growing up, my brother and I disagreed on almost every topic, it was simply our nature. However, there were rare times we would come together in unity: to beg for a pet. Cassandra, affectionately and as the result of an early speech impediment called "Ca-ja-ba", was my first dog. She was a huge, black, mixed breed puppy that very quickly got big enough to bully me daily. Soon afterward we inherited a golden retriever mixed with something unique, possibly a wiener dog. It looked like a normal golden retriever, just a lot stubbier. Those mutts kept my brother and I running around every day after school. It was a great time to be young and rambunctious. 

The tide changed when my mom announced that we were moving to New Waverly in the middle of Texas, specifically a small rural village of 900 people. Immediately I cried, "What about the puppies?", and my brother followed with the same concern. My mom decided it would be best to reply, “Let’s not worry about them right now, they will be fine". For some reason we accepted this as legitimate answer to our question. Looking back of course, with my current propensity to question the logic behind everything, I would have not have been satisfied. On my last day of school, I arrived home and the backyard was empty. No excited barking to greet me. No new holes dug. No Cassandra. No Jayjay. My brother told me a man came and picked them up earlier. The next few days of packing were not very pleasant. No school, no friend... no puppies, it was not a great time to be young and rambunctious.