The relationship between my son and my my dog has been one of true love. Brad and Tara were great buddies, but that was never shown quite so clearly as last night, despite the two of them being several thousand miles apart.
Yesterday was the local community festival, which always ends with a lengthy, dog-terrifying fireworks display. I decided to 'get out of Dodge' with the dog, and drove her into the city ahead of the first boom. With no particular place to go, I decided to drive up Burnaby Mountain and see if we could see the fireworks from that vantage point, away from the booming sounds.
It's a pretty familiar drive. For many years, I would drive up to the top of that mountain to pick up my son, Brad, at Simon Fraser University. Tara my Labrador Retriever would always accompany me for the ride and a chance to see her boy. It's been 4 years since I made one of those runs.
As we entered the grounds of the university, Tara started to pant and pace around in her part of the car. By the time we were passing the spot where we used to pick up Brad, she was almost beside herself with excitement. She hasn't seen Brad since last September when he and Deb moved to England where he is doing his Masters at the University of York. Tara was convinced she was going to see him right then and there.
When I didn't stop she started whining and looking out the back window, convinced that I had forgotten to stop. I felt really badly about disappointing her.
I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. The dog hasn't been in this spot for 4 years, but she still associated it with seeing Brad. It was as clear an indication as anyone could expect that the dog misses Brad almost as much as I do.
A dog's love is unconditional. Even if she hasn't seen you for a long time, she will still be excited at the prospect of licking your face once again.
Amen to that, Gordon. I don't know who wrote this, but it's true - if you want unconditional love, get a dog.
ReplyDelete