She knew before the rest of us did.
Charlie, our four-year-old Havanese, used to stand by Eddie, look up at him and bark. Then she’d come over to where I was, look up at me and bark some more.
Before that she only barked when someone knocked on the door.
Not long after all the barking, Eddie was diagnosed with cancer. As he has gone through his treatments and spent much time in bed, Charlie has always stayed at his side. When Eddie has had to use a cane or walker to go on walks, Charlie slows down her pace to walk beside him.
Charlie’s a special dog. Truth be told, though, all our dogs are, right? I’ve had a love affair with dogs for most of my life. The stories we could all share about our faithful friends go on and on. And these days, they help me feel better.
As Eddie makes his way through this illness, I often need a smile, a good guffaw, or even a cleansing cry. As always, dogs to the rescue! There is so much funny stuff on Instagram, lots of wonderful books and some great movies that never let me down.
Here are some good doggie places to go on the Gram:
https://www.instagram.com/theshihtzusophie/
https://www.instagram.com/thedogist/
https://www.instagram.com/my_aussie_gal/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/weratedogs/?hl=en
https://www.instagram.com/canines/?hl=en
My favorite dog movies:
Best of Show
Pick of the Litter
A Dog’s Purpose
Lady and the Tramp
101 Dalmatians
Old Yeller
My favorite dog books:
The Eyes and the Impossible, Dave Eggers
Beloved Dog, Maira Kalman
My Life in Seven Dogs, Jenny Boylan
Let’s Take the Long Way Home, Gail Caldwell
Bones, Keith Carter
The Dog in Photography 1839 – Today
Dogs, Phaidon
And A Dog Called Fig, Helen Humphreys
The Dog Observed, Edited by Ruth Silverman
Dog Dogs, Elliott Erwitt
Go, Dog, Go, P.D. Eastman
Please indulge me as I share pictures from over the years of our special girl, Charlie. Eddie’s been in the hospital just over a month at this point and having this fluffball in my arms as much as possible has meant everything.
