Some of those ‘people’ who enter our lives and change us have four feet with which to leave muddy paw prints. Maybe having that many legs makes it easier for dogs to leave lasting impressions on our souls. Perhaps it is because they are such a constant in our lives when we bring them into our family.
Like so many of life’s mysteries, I’m not sure how it works. I just know that it does.
Sadie joined our family as a puppy in March of 1997. We got her from the local Humane Society after my lovely bride and Junior (a fourth-grader at the time) had visited there looking for the perfect puppy to adopt. On their third trip they found an unnamed puppy that fit the bill.
Our Border Collie German Shepherd mix was mostly black, except for a patch of white on her chest, with all four paws tipped in white as well. There was some discussion on what to name her. The kids favored Shanana. I liked Nike – due to her white ‘shoes’. I think my wife may have come up with the name Sadie that we all agreed on.
We adopted Sadie as an agreement with Junior. The previous fall we had moved to our current home which meant the kids would be attending different schools within the Hopkins school district. As long as we allowed Laura to ride her bike to grandma’s house to catch the bus to the junior high her old classmates were attending she was fine with the move. Jack wasn’t old enough to do that, so he agreed to go to a new school if we would get him a dog. My wife and I are glad he drove that bargain, and even more happy that we agreed to it.
Sadie was a model student finishing at the top of her obedience school class.
Sadie was with us a good long while. Unfortunately we had to put her to sleep on December 30th, 2011.
By our estimates she was 2 months short of 15 human years. That figures out to just short of 105 dog years. Our veterinarian told us that Sadie was the largest dog he’s cared for that reached that ripe old age. He always had a soft spot for her as his first dog, as a young boy, looked a lot like our Sadie. He treated her with care, compassion, and kindness for the entire time she was a member of our family.
When Sadie joined our family in 1997 gasoline was $1.40 a gallon. Bill Clinton was in his second term as President. I was driving a big old Ford pickup truck and Sadie loved to ride in it, both in the cab (where she’d stick her nose out the rear slider window) and back in the open bed.
The Minnesota Vikings, led by Dennis Green, went 9-7 that year. The Twins, managed by Tom Kelly, went 68-94 and finished 4th in the American League Central Division. About the most exciting thing happening at the Metrodome that year was that my lovely bride worked there during the day and Sadie loved to go to work with her to explore all of the nooks and crannies of that major league stadium. There were very few people in the stadium when Sadie would visit, but those that did see her enjoyed having her there. She was such a friendly, gentle soul.
In 1997 a month after Sadie became a member of our family the IBM computer Deep Blue became the first computer to beat chess grandmaster Gary Kasparov. By the time Sadie departed computers became so common place that we really would be hard pressed to function without them. I work on one eight hours a day, interact with one going to and from work, and usually have one within reach 24/7.
Sadie was with us when Laura graduated from high school, then college, then grad school, twice. She saw Jack graduate high school and college. I finally got my undergraduate degree too while Sadie was around.
Sadie was with us when extended relatives came to stay with us for periods of time. In sickness and in health, she always made members of our family feel better.
She was the member of the family who was always cheerful when you arrived and looked perplexed whenever you chose to leave.
She was patient and forgiving. I just know she hated it when Laura would put Jack’s t-shirts on her, but I think she was intrigued by how hard it made Laura laugh so she endured the indignity of it all.
She loved being outdoors and knew the value of laying around and chill-axin’.
Sadie loved us unconditionally and just wanted to be with us whenever she could. Whether it was a special occasion like the first day of school or an ordinary weekday evening, she just liked being with the group.
Now we can only try to be the people she thought we were. It’s a pretty high standard. She thought we were about the best things on two legs. We thought the same of her – only with four legs. We thought she was the best dog that ever lived. We were lucky to have her in our family, through so many changes and for such a good long while.
A departed pet inspiring one to be a better person, who knew?
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