How she came into this world, I don’t know. Where she came from, well, I don’t know that either. I know she was lost and I think I was too. I know that day we met she found a friend and so did I.
This was my first case of love at first sight. She was very different from any other of her kind. She couldn’t talk, but she knew how to sing. Sometimes when she first saw you she would stretch and all you could do was laugh at her. Her back legs would go back and she would slide backward, walking back at the same time.
From the first time we met we got along great. A friend, who I was visiting, said they’d found her and did I want her? Without giving it a second thought I said yes. From that moment on we were always together. Wherever I went, she went. When she saw me putting on my shoes she would get up and wait for me by the door. She would wait very impatiently for me to say, “Okay, let’s go”. Before I could finish that short sentence she would be waiting at the sidewalk for me.
Riding in the car she always had to have her elbows resting on the windowsill and her head out in the breeze. Her ears would flatten as she carefully checked everything out. The Queen was cruising in her royal carriage.
Some nights we would sit and I would talk and she would listen. If I got too boring she would start singing and I would get the hint. I would get up and say, “Okay, let’s go for a walk”. She would get all excited and dance around at the door. I’d open the door and off we would go.
Every week she seemed to come up with some new trick or some new thing she would do just to make me smile or laugh. If ever I was on my computer too long and she got bored, she would walk up and nibble at my arm or leg. If that didn’t work, she would start pulling at my pant leg and start singing until she got what she wanted. That would either be a treat or a walk. If there was ever an argument, between either cats or humans, she always tried in her own way to patch things up. A sweeter more loveable dog you couldn’t find.
Exploring was her real forte. When we would go for a walk she would investigate every yard, bush and tree. She loved cats. I mean she really loved them. Whenever she met a new one she would pester that cat until it decided it would be easier to be friends with her than to put up with her always trying to lick it. There was a couple of times while we were walking she met up with a cat that would not want to be friends. Both times she carried the smell of that black cat with the white stripe down it’s back home with her. It was a good thing I found out about using tomato juice to get rid of the smell of skunk.
Many times we would be out walking and it seemed she would be trying to show me how smart she was. One time there was this long stucco wall and she decided to walk on the other side of it. I couldn’t tell if there was a fence at the other end or if she would be able to get out there. Halfway down I whistled for her just in case she couldn’t. Out she came at the other end. She would just stand there, wagging her tail and looking at me with what I swear was a smile and a look that said, “Hey, I’m pretty smart don’t you think?” That dog had so many endearing qualities.
Times got a little rough for me. It seemed like my whole world was falling apart. I lost the girl I loved, my home and my car. I had nothing left except her. She didn’t care what I had as long as we were together. If it wasn’t for her I think I would have given up hope and well, just given up on life.
One time we were out walking, I was thinking and she was doing her thing as usual. She never crossed the street without permission. She would wait at every corner, impatiently until I caught up and gave her the okay to cross. Then she would fly across that street. I was still down about losing everything I had and trying to figure out a way to get out of the mess I was in. I was thinking with nothing left to lose, I had everything to gain, right? About that time she spotted a possible new friend. When that cat saw her it took off like almost every other cat. She got all happy and took off after it. I just smiled until I saw that cat turn to cross the street. I screamed her name as she ran between two parked cars and into the path of an oncoming automobile. I screamed, but it was too late. I ran to my crumpled friend lying there in the street. I held her in my arms and begged her not to die. I guess she couldn’t hear me because she always listened to me when I told her to do something.
How she came into this world, I don’t know. Where she came from, well, I don’t know that either. She was lost and I think I was too. I know that day we met; she found a friend and so did I.

This story is dedicated to “Rena” the best friend I ever had. Please read afterword below story.

February 1st, 2001

Now, I have rebuilt most of what I call "My life". I am back to being a happy guy or my normal self, as people know me. She was part of my sanity, the only joy left in my life, and a big part of what was left of my life at the time. When I think of her moisture sometimes will still get in my eyes. She was a very good companion and friend.