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| Hugo Boss |
I know I'm supposed to be writing about my little ladies. But before there was them, there was him. Our beloved pup, Hugo Boss the Boston Terrier. Later in life he suffered from severe arthritis and in the end the pain was more than either of us could bear. We said goodbye tonight, and its one of the harder days I've had. This is what I told him…
Dear Hugo,
You were the best dog.
Period. Thank you for sharing
your too short life with us and teaching me how to love and really care for
someone other than myself all those years ago.
I’m sorry for all the ways I
screwed you up, I take full responsibility…but that’s what happens to the first
kid. You learn your lesson and do better. Liesee and Poppy thank you for being my
guinea pig.
On that Christmas Day when I unwrapped you and smelt your
little puppy breath, I burst into tears.
To be clear, there is some debate about these waterworks. I always tell
people I cried because I thought your father was going to propose (and that is
true), but the whole truth is you were the most adorable, wonderful little
puppy I had ever laid my eyes on.
You stole my heart within the first moment, and you stayed
there and you always will. In fact, you stole the hearts of a whole group of 20
something’s that needed a dog to make their crappy apartments feel more like
home. You belonged to all of us. You snuggled with us through heartbreak and
happiness. You were a sort of mascot and
you were always our biggest fan, happy to see us and generous with your sloppy
kisses. Sorry we shuffled you around so
much. I don’t think I ever thanked you
for being so adaptable. You were always good that way; quick to find the sunny
spots or warm registers in each new place.
You did a lot of things that drove us nuts. You snored louder than an obese man with
sleep apnea. But, I’ll miss that
too. It had kind of become the
soundtrack of my sleep.
Not sure what I’m going to do without your muscular little
body tucked between my legs on cold winter nights. You no doubt helped us save money on heating
bills because you were our built in space heater. You surprised quite a few dog sitters with
that move too. I always “forgot” to warn
them about your tendency to really go for it.
You never discriminated, two warm legs was all you needed.
Sometimes you stepped on my face in the middle of the night,
and this made me mad. Sorry I got upset;
I realize you were just trying to get comfortable. I’m sure it was hard to share a bed with two
humans.
You had a weird thing about doorbells. I’m hoping Heaven is doorbell free, and you
won’t have to worry about that anymore.
You also had powerful pee. Remember that one time you peed
on our air conditioning unit and we had to get a whole new one? Well, I just wanted to tell you its ok. We forgave you and actually used it as a
selling point when we sold our house. ”Brand New AC Unit!” But, seriously thanks for not ever doing that
again.
You had your flaws but, man you were great at a lot of
things. You were the best snuggler. And, you always knew when we needed you. I wouldn’t have gotten through my pregnancies
and miscarriage without your warm little body snuggled up to my side; your
warmth always easing my pain.
I don’t know that you actually understood us, but you had a
way of listening where you tilted your head just so; that was pretty neat. When we needed to see our best selves we just
looked through your eyes. You were fearless, and tough, and had a bigger heart
than a dog ten times your size. Your warm deep eyes saw and knew the best and
worst of us…thank you for loving us anyway.
Your greatest roll was also probably your biggest demotion;
top dog to big brother. Thanks for not running away when we brought Annaliese
home from the hospital. I know that was
a big change, and you did way better than we expected. As she turned from baby to toddler you were a
good sport. Thanks for letting her dress
you up like a girl, poke your eyes and treat you like her baby doll. When Poppy was born, you handled being humbled
a second time with the same level of grace.
You were the best big brother, and the girls would like to personally
thank you for helping them eat their peas.
I hope you know that you are so very loved and so very very
missed. When you get to Heaven I hope
you run wild and free. No pain, no
anxiety, just rivers of dog biscuits and mountains of warm fleece blankets.
Hugo Boss, I have no more words, just love. Sleep well my dear friend, until we meet
again.
Thankfully Yours.
Kate
