I knew when I woke up that it was going to be a bad day. My daughter’s car was left stranded across town after breaking down just before midnight, and I had to get up at the crack of dawn to drive there and call a tow truck to get it. All this after getting less than five hours of sleep the night before.
If I had only known that this would be the highlight of my day. If I had only known that just a few hours later, I would be saying goodbye to a member of my family.
I know dogs aren't people...but the simple fact is, sometimes they just do a better job of acting like it than some of the people I know.
But Cybil wasn’t always a good dog. She had her bad habits, as charming as they may seem now.
When she was younger, she liked to steal bread from the kitchen counter. And she liked to escape the yard and run down the street, waiting at the end until someone would give chase. Only then would she circle around and head back to the house. It was her favorite game. She didn’t like many people…especially men…but she loved her family. And we always knew if she was around, we were safe.
I have thought about her last day with us, and wondered…was she happy?
I think she was. In her last moments, she came up to see me as I worked on my laptop. She put her head on my arm and I scratched behind her ear the way she liked. Then she flopped down on the floor beside my chair—wherever I was, she wasn’t far away—and she slipped off to sleep for the last time.
She didn’t make a sound…not a single whimper…she was just gone.
But not forgotten…she will never be forgotten.
Until the next time…I’ll be remembering Cybil.