A Rare Thing, A Precious Thing

These two had a very special bond. Love started it. Love for a teen aged daughter going through a tough time. Her Dad thought of her when he stopped to get gas in Northern California on his way home from a job and saw a man with a box of puppies. The one with one ear up and one ear down caught his eye and Elle came home with him, complete with a little red bow that he tied around her neck. Over the years, that puppy loved George so completely that the act of love for his daughter became a gift to himself that he will cherish the rest of his life. Testament to this love is the following Tribute to Elle that George wrote. Key words here are "George wrote". George does not write these kinds of things. A rare thing, a precious thing. The dog, the man, the tribute.

"No more pitter-patter of little feet on the motor home tile. No more sharing my cheese sandwich at dawn (Elle was always up before dawn) 'cause today our little Elle is gone. I laid her in her little box with her head resting on her bunny and placed her under the lilacs, where she liked to go in the morning. 

Don't usually get too attached to pets but after fifteen years and all 48 states the little dog sort of grew on us. She's been to Brooklyn, had lobster in Maine, chased squirrels at the White House and possums in Mississippi. She's braved the cold, cold New Mexico mornings, played in the snow in New Hampshire, made friends with an Amish horse in Ohio, played on the South Carolina beaches and was a big hit on Bourbon Street. She even pooped on the Capitol Building lawn in DC. And Elle, being a good Republican, insisted we not clean it up (good fertilizer).

She was from California but preferred the South...more squirrels. She loved going places where she was welcome: Uncle Tom's, Aunt Sue's, Dan & Ann's, Aunt Carol's, Jon and Jen's, Mike and Kay's, Wayne and Linda's, Bennie and Bobbye's. But she always liked to go back to Jodi's, the girl who trained her and gave her to us. Thanks, Jodi. Rest in peace, Elle."