Recently I had the pleasure of having my older brother visit me for two weeks. We had so much catching up to do and with no other family around we could talk and talk and talk. (Until midnight one night or maybe two)..
He made breakfast for himself and me and even served me. What a treat that was and ya know it felt really nice. He looked forward to dinner every night and I tried to make his favorites and hope I succeeded, and if I didn�t well there were the brownies..
Some days he hung around and we just talked, or would go sit on the deck with a cup of coffee and Sparky. He and Sparky became close friends. While John sat on the deck he pulled the wild mint that was growing up between the boards, then anything else he saw he did and of course his �buddy� was right there with him..
One evening I was out trimming the Wisteria when a neighbor called to me and I went down to the fence. Then I heard John laughing. He was playing with Sparky and the dog grabbed his foot and plop, right on his sit me down he went! No he wasn�t hurt, but Sparks got a kick out of it and �attacked" John and they were both like little kids having a good time. John was laughing and Sparks was bringing him his ball. (Gee this is fun a person sitting on the grass playing with me!. Why didn�t I think of THAT SOONER?).
Then one evening John took Sparky for a walk, outside the gate and they walked a good distance. When they came in they both looked for their respective places to sit down. (Sheehs ma how come you don�t take me for walks in the neighborhood? Now I learned to mark my territory and it sure is big! Wait till you see!).
When we ate dinner Sparky wouldn�t touch his food until my brother finished his dinner. (I guess I am showing Uncle John MY manners. He is the man!)The same held for breakfast and lunch. My brother couldn�t understand why the dog wasn�t eating eggs, or potatoes. I explained to him that he neither liked eggs,fried potatoes or cheese and don�t try giving him liver! (Gosh it took ma to tell him that. Doesn�t he know when a dog won�t eat something it is either not liked or I am not hungry?).
We went to the store and I took Sparky with me and put his seat belt on. My brother asked why I did that. Well brother, he like any loose object in the car can become a projectile. I personally don�t want to get hit with a dog that weights 27 lbs. (There goes ma again having to explain. I know she loves me and wants to keep me safe, heck I even have a water bowl and my own little rug on the floor. Uncle John is a great guy and knows me well but why couldn�t he figure that out?).
The weather turned cold so John slept in the house, of course he opted for the sofa and ole� Sparky couldn�t figure that out! (Hey Ma , tell him to get off my bed! I tried to make him move last night but he didn�t. Please do something about this situation?) My brother told me that Sparky wanted to sleep with him but couldn�t get comfy. I laughed and told him, that Sparky slept on the sofa sometimes on his blanket. (About time mom, hope he understands).
The day my brother went home was really sad. I hated to see him leave and Sparky looked for him all over and was dumfounded by his absence but his �smell� was still there. (What happened to Uncle John Mom? Where is he hiding? I can�t find him!) Well this continued for a few days and any time the door opened Sparky would run like a bat out of you know where and then have a look of disappointment on his face..
A few nights later Sparky was lying on the floor by the front door, looking at me then his leash. I finally got the message, put on my coat and Sparky pulled his leash from the knob and brought it to me. We went for a walk and he was one happy pup showing me the way he wanted to go (come on ma I want you to see where I marked my territory, keep walking we went farther!).
Now every night at 6:30 Sparky repeats the process and is happier but still he looks for his buddy. What he doesn�t know is that my brother is coming to visit again between Christmas and New Years. I�m not telling so don�t you! It�ll be a nice surprise for my loving, constant and faithful companion.