Daily Prompt: BFFs

Photographers, artists, poets: show us FRIENDS.

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About 3 years ago a tiny, little person joined my family. Unfortunately, we started off on a wrong foot, or shall we say four wrong feet? To start with, he had a bad attitude. He came into my home behaving like he owned it! He was running about my house, knocking things down, chewing furniture and worst of all leaving behind tiny, little brown packages that stink! You get the drift?

What’s more, our personalities could not be more mismatched. I am cautious, responsible and down to earth (yes, some call that insipid, but I think “I have my bright moments”). He on the other hand is; wild, crazy, reckless and completely insolent and one strongly suspects devious? Yes devious, why else would he chew off my favorite Jeans, or drop his stinky packages and then cleverly conceal them with pillows, or attack the living daylights out of my poor sandals? Note: The sandals are since in rehabilitation, while the Jeans never made it! May their soul rest in peace!

Buddy? Naaaaw this little guy is a pest and a mooch. His insolence only exaggerated by his indolence, and were it not for the fact that he is absolutely adorable, he would have been completely intolerable.

Yet slowly but surely things changed between us. Not sure if it was his soft furry coat, wagging tail, or big saucer eyes, but before I knew it, Ziggy had sneaked his way into my heart. He became my shadow; following me everywhere (psst Ziggy has no concept of “personal space” or “too much”). I mean he is practically a nose length away from me, at all time (and not by my choice).

I will say though, Ziggy has trained me to be a better person more than I may have trained him to be a better dog. For instance he taught me the concept of sacrifice. Since he has come into my life I have sacrificed both tranquility and privacy. While at home, he barks incessantly. While outside, he attracts way too much attention. For instance, when Ziggy pulls me out for one of our walks, I notice random cars slowing down as they drive past (ladies literally hanging out of their cars swooning over him), strangers stopping by to pet him… Pre-Ziggy era I could have dropped dead without a kind soul bothering to pass a glance. But at least I had my privacy! Now I can barely walk a 100 feet without getting ambushed by one his fans. I now understand how the entourage of a celebrity feels. Attention whore!

Ziggy has also taught me to be patient. I patiently wait for him to sniff half a football field before he finds himself the perfect little spot to do his business. Once finished, he gallantly chooses to stride off, while I am left, patiently picking his droppings.

Ziggy has also taught me to more selfless. This little guy has mastered many tricks. He will “sit down”, “roll over”, “heel”, “beg” all for a treat. Yet the one trick he shall not learn, is to “fetch”. No Sir, he shall not fetch. I so envy other humans who will throw a stick in the air, for their obedient dogs to fetch while they smugly watch. My dog however shall not let me have this satisfaction. My dog will fly in the air fetch the stick, get his treat, but will not let go off of the stick. You see he can eat my food, live for free in my house but he will not share a lousy stick with me. Indeed he has taught me a thing or two about selfless love, it’s called “I have no choice, my dog won’t fetch the goddam stick!”

Ziggy may not be a perfect dog much as I am not a perfect human, but what would I do without the constant pitter patter of his feet on my cement floors, or his unconcealed excitement to see me after work, his constant curiosity and his many little mischief’s? Truth is my world is a much brighter place because of this little fur ball I call Ziggy.