Anecdotes from Cadiz Part 2: Dogs

Although getting to live in Spain for six months has been one of the most enjoyable and transformative experiences of my life, being so far away from my family in the United States is not always easy. I miss home the most when my family is going through a hard time and I am unable to be there. Since arriving in Spain at the end of January, there have been two deaths in my family. My grandma passed away from Alzheimer's in April, and my dog passed away in June due to a sudden illness that caused organ failure and significant damage to her spinal cord. Although my grandma's death brought me a lot of sadness, she had been declining for a long time and thus hadn't been herself for years. Even before her death, she was already dead in a way. Prior to leaving for Spain, I made sure to see her because I knew there was a strong chance she wouldn't be alive before I came back, and unfortunately I was right.

Finding out my dog passed away was especially heartbreaking because she has been an important part of my life for the past twelve years. She was playful, funny, and cuddly. I always looked forward to coming home and being greeted by my dog wagging her bum and rolling over for a belly rub. Though mischievous at times, she always kept my family entertained and brought us together. Although I have done plenty of crying, I don't think my dog's death will fully hit me until I get back to the United States. Because I saw her every day, I will notice her absence more. When I go to cut off the bottom of the head of lettuce and my dog isn't there to sit and lie down in order to earn it as a treat, I will feel her absence. When all of my socks are on the floor just as I left them because my dog did not steal one to play with, I will feel her absence. When people come to my house and I don't hear any barking, I will feel her absence. Lately I been wanting to spend as much with dogs as possible here in Spain given that I won’t get to spend time with mine anymore once I get back to the United States.

During my Erasmus Trip to Cadiz (for more information, please read my post titled "Anecdotes from Cadiz Part 1"), we went to Bolonia Beach, the most beautiful beach I have even been to. As I was taking a walk on the beach, I saw two dogs playing with each other. One of them, a golden retriever, was digging a hole and had a tennis ball next to him. The other dog, who looked like a border collie, was running around the golden retriever and barking. 

As soon as he saw me approach, the golden retriever grabbed the tennis ball and trotted toward me. He dropped the ball in front of me, indicating that he wanted to play fetch. I grabbed the ball and threw it as far as I could. Once the border collie saw the golden retriever running towards the ball, he ran after him. Once he caught up, he tried to herd the golden retriever and slow him down. I began to lose track of time as I continued throwing the ball for the dogs. They had the same excitement and light in their eyes as my dog did. I felt my dog with me during that time, as I saw her come back to life through these two dogs. The golden retriever represented her sweet side, while the border collie represented her bossy yet playful side. From that moment, I began to realize that my dog can come back to life in different ways that might be hard to notice. However, if I am attentive, I will be able to connect with her again.


My playmates




 

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