On January 23rd my life was changed. It was a regular Thursday, nothing unusual until that afternoon. I had my first encounter with Phoebe. She's my ray of sunshine and my most loyal companion. She's only about two feet tall and thirty pounds. If you haven't guessed yet, she's my new puppy. Now it's been over a month, she's three months old, and my best friend.

Girls, in general, can be difficult, moody and manipulative. After the first many kisses mixed with the cute waddle of her happy booty, I was convinced I had to have her! I had just moved to Columbia. I was jobless and very nervous to tell my mom that I had taken her in. I already had two pet rats living with me so I knew my mom wasn't going to be thrilled with the new addition. I decided that to soften the "surprise" I would wait to tell her until I got a job.

If you know me even a little then you would know I am THE WORST at keeping secrets! It took about a week before I was ready to burst. So I decided to bite the bullet and I called my mom.

As any logical person would do, I started the conversation with, "Promise you won't be mad..." This obviously set her on edge already. I blurted, "I took in a stray and her name is Phoebe and you can't take her away from me!" My mom miraculously didn't immediately deliver death threats. She spoke calmly and was just like, "okay."

Never did I expect my mother to accept that I got a dog! So my mouth hanging open for a good minute. Just when I thought was in the clear, my mom angrily says, "Tori, don't you get ANOTHER animal!"

I just wanted to share this story because Phoebe is such a big part of my life now. I love her very much. She's the only living, breathing thing that doesn't annoy me with questions about what's wrong when I'm sad and she's always down for an adventure! She's my everyday glimpse of unconditional love and trust.