August 14th, 1996 was the day my parents' parents became grandparents, the day my mom and dad welcomed their first child into the world, and the day I became a sister to a dachshund named Molly and a beagle named Sam. From the beginning of my existence to nearly two decades later, my family has always been a revered compilation of biological relations and four-legged, furry friends. Many people may regard my family’s irrevocable affection for our dogs to be abnormal or even a bit bizarre given the level to which we regard our dogs as equally true members of our family, but it is how we have always operated. Growing up with a dog is an experience incapable of sufficient explanation, but for other dog-owners and for those who can owe much of who they are today to their childhood companions, hopefully this article will speak to you in some capacity.
In my 19 years of life, I have shared my bed, my memories and my heart with four incredibly unique, incredibly wonderful and incredibly impactful canine pals. My dachshund Molly (1990-2003), my beagle Sam (1995-2010), my English pointer Sir Clyde Billy von Chester (a.k.a. Clyde, 2011-present), and my rescue English pointer Lady Nellie Elizabeth Mae (a.k.a. Nellie, 2013-present) each have a piece of my soul, a piece of my heart, and a piece of my identity. Without their presence in my life, I wouldn’t be half the person I am today because I would never know the definition of unyielding love, the capacity of complete trust, the potentiation of emotional support and the pure joy made possible when growing up with a dog. From forcibly joining my little sister and me in countless dress up fashion shows, to assuming the needed part in every one of our imaginative scenarios, to sitting alongside us as we played with Barbies and Legos, and most importantly, to being the only shoulder to cry on with the kindness to lick away my tears, my dogs have been there with me, experiencing life by my side.
With what I’ve gone through in the last few years and the extensive, consuming emotions that defined me through understanding depression. I don’t know if I would be here today if Clyde and Nellie weren’t there to hold me and stay by my side when everything went dark.
There is something indescribable about the power of comfort in knowing you are loved. Despite your every fault, you are worthy and you make a difference. For me, my dogs served as reminders of this (and still do today) when I couldn’t believe in anything else and for that, I owe them everything.
Yes, my family is a little dog crazy (hence the custom portrait painted by a renowned artist which hangs in the family room) and will never live in a house without a dog to wake us up, follow us around or sleep with us on the couch after a long day. And yes, I am the daughter of my mother and father, so naturally I too will never abandon such a necessary tradition. I can never take back the many shoes swallowed, the ruined mornings when I woke up to my face being stepped on or scratched or the countless plans disrupted by the need to let the dogs out or to go feed the dogs, but I wouldn’t take it back for anything if it meant not being able to receive the same love or return it back to them.
So here’s a toast to my three four-legged sisters and my white and brown haired brother:
Molly, Sam, Clyde and Nelz, I love you with all my heart equally and uniquely, with all that I am and with all that I hope to be. Thank you for believing in me, for never leaving my side, for always understanding the words I couldn’t bring myself to say, for knowing when I needed you and for understanding me better than I could hope to understand myself. Your loyalty, your love and your lives are forever cherished in my heart, forever and for always. Thank you with all my love, my beautiful babies.
