Gabriella and her brother Andrew dreamed of having a dog their whole lives. Fueling this desire was the notion that everyone they knew had dogs, and so it seemed.
One night after watching a movie with talking animals the kids insisted on discussing their interest in a dog.
Gingerly approaching her Dad, Gabriella pleaded, "Daddy. How come we can’t have a dog?"
Reading the sports news, Dad replied, “When you’re older sweetie.”
Frustrated, Andrew insisted, “No Dad. Why do you say when she’s older?”
“Your sister’s still too young, that’s all,” said Dad.
“So it’s my fault we can’t have a dog," pouted Gabriella.
"No sweetie, it’s not your fault," said Dad.
Re-arranging the living room closet, Mom said, "Animals are temperamental sometimes. We just don’t want anyone getting hurt.”
"But all my friends have dogs and they’re my age," said Gabriella.
“True," replied Dad. "But we’re not taking another chance after you were bitten on the nose that one time."
Andrew shakes his head.
"But Spike’s tail was wagging in my face!" exclaimed Gabriella.
"Yes, but Spike didn’t know that. Dog’s don’t like getting their tails pulled," said Dad.
Mom adds, "Don’t forget that we both work and you kids are at school and daycare so it wouldn’t be fair to the dog to leave them home alone all day.”
“Exactly," said Dad. "Dogs are pack animals. They don’t like being left alone."
Mom added, "They’re a huge responsibility! Besides feeding them and bathing them, you have to train them, walk them at least twice a day, and take ’em to the vet."
Dad interrupts, "Look kids, we’ll talk about this another time. Time for bed."
Disappointed their parents hadn’t changed their minds about getting a dog, the kids dragged themselves upstairs, doing their usual mopey walk. Gabriella said to her brother, "We’re never getting a dog."
In the coming months, Gabriella and Andrew became friends with their new next door neighbor’s dog — a rescued White Shepherd named Bunny. Beautiful, gentle, and shy as a deer, few were able to pet Bunny, but luckily Gabriella and Andrew were the exception.
One weekend afternoon while the kids were playing outside with Bunny, they heard a loud crashing sound inside their house.
“Flippin’ muck junk gunk!” yelled Dad.
Desperate to see what happened, the kids discovered a closet shelf had collapsed on Dad’s head. Covered in spilled craft paint and glue with board game pieces and newspapers stuck to him, Dad sat motionless in a state of shock and shame - a human art project that had gone terribly terribly wrong.
"What was all that ruckus?" asked Mom as she entered the room.
The kids stare and giggle.
"Ohhh! You found the craft paint and glue! I had forgotten where they were. Oh no, my newspaper articles! They’re ruined!" said Mom.
Irritated, Dad replied, “Your articles? How ’bout a little help?”
"Of course! I’m sorry," said Mom with a slight smirk. "You okay?"
“Yeah, yeah. But we have way too much junk," said Dad.
“Excuse me? No. We don’t have junk. We have stuff.
Dad adds, "A lot of stuff."
"Yeah well, it’s our house that’s too small," said Mom.
“Well that’s a discussion for another day,” said Dad. “I mean, who puts paint in a closet anyway?”
“People without garages,” said Mom. “It was in a sealed box.”
“Sealed? I don’t think so," said Dad. “We just need to get rid of some stuff, like these board games no one plays.”
“No Daddy! We can’t,” said Gabriella. “Not the Molopoly.”
Laughing, “Molopoly. You don’t even know how to play Molopoly,” said Dad.
“But I like the little doggy,” giggled Gabriella.
“Fine, we’ll keep the Molopoly,” said Dad. “But other games have to go.”
Observing the limited storage space, Dad said to himself, “We do need a bigger place.”
Overhearing, Mom said aloud, “Yep! And with a garage!”
“And a yard,” added Gabriella.
“And my own room,” added Andrew.
“Okay everyone. I get it!" said Dad in a loud voice. "Anything else?” he whispers to himself.
“A pool would be nice,” said Mom.
Indulging Mom, Dad said, “Sure. Just as soon as we cash-in one of my million dollar ideas!”
Months pass and one morning over breakfast, Dad made a special announcement to the kids. He said, “Your Mom and I have some news.”
Andrew asked, "Did you cash-in your million dollar idea?"
Laughing, "Well, sort-of," replied Dad. "Remember the day that closet shelf whacked me on the head?"
The kids recall with amusement.
"Well, it made me think," said Dad. "Kids, your Mom and I’ve decided that you two no longer have to share a room,” said Dad.
Hesitating, Andrew replied, “Wait. You’re not going to turn our closet into a tiny bedroom are you Dad?"
"Great idea Andrew," said Dad. "But that’s not exactly what we had in mind. You really are getting your own rooms though."
Suspicious, Andrew pressed the question, “How then?”
“There’s a house for sale that your Mom and I would like you both to see,” shared Dad.
“No way,” said Andrew.
“Yep. Way,” said Dad. "We’ve been saving up for this."
“Is there a yard Daddy?” asked Gabriella.
“Yes, sweetie,” said Dad. “I thought we’d all go see it after breakfast.”
"Is there a pool?" asked Andrew.
"No," replied Mom. "But there’s enough room for one some day!"
Upon arriving to the house, the kids ran straight toward the front yard with the tree swing. Immediately after, Gabriella noticed a miniature house and asked, “Is that a dollhouse Mom?”
Laughing, “No,” said Mom. “I suppose it could be, but I think it might actually be a better doghouse.” Both kids stared at each other in disbelief.
"But what about Bunny, Mom? We’ll miss her," exclaimed Gabriella.
"Then we’ll have to let her come visit," replied Mom. Satisfied with Mom’s answer, the kids continued to explore their new home.
Moving closer to the office, Dad no longer had to drive to work, he could ride his bike instead. Mom was also able to work as a writer from home and have more time with the kids.
One day after Mom picked up the kids from school, she asked if they wanted to visit the local Animal Shelter where they heard Bunny was adopted. Both agreed.
Leading the way to the Animal Shelter was Gabriella and Andrew with their Mom following close behind.
Inside, the shelter were multiple rooms with small, medium and large dogs grouped into separate stalls; most were full-grown, mixed-breeds and a majority were Pit Bulls.
Struck by the large number of Pit Bulls, Mom asked an employee why there were so many.
The employee replied, “You’d be surprised how many people don’t spay or neuter their pets. That’s why the Pit Bull population is so big. A lot of ’em end up here.”
“Wow, really?!.. That’s sad,” said Mom.
“Yeah,” agreed the employee. "They’re nice dogs, but they get a bad wrap because a lot of people train them to be aggressive."
"I’ve heard that," said Mom. To herself, she thought she should write an article on that topic. "Thanks for the information!"
"Of course," said the employee.
The kids quickly observed how sad many of the dogs looked.
Gabriella asked, "Are they sad because they’re lonely?"
"Probably," said Mom. "They’re waiting for their forever homes."
Having seen dozens of rambunctious dogs that day, the kids left disappointed after not finding the mild tempered dog the parents were hoping for.
To ease their disappointment, Mom reassured the kids that choosing a dog would take time. Though they understood, they were frustrated nonetheless.
After another month passed, Mom asked the kids if they were ready to return to the Animal Shelter. They agreed without hesitation.
Numerous dogs had come in since their last visit. Peaking their interest were three, mixed-breed, Pit Bull pups with a sign showing they were available for adoption.
Thrilled and almost certain they had found their match, Gabriella and Andrew began dreaming up pet names.
Moments later, a shelter employee posted a sign in big, bold print, stating, all three pups were adopted.
Heartbroken, the kids decided they wanted to leave.
Trying to lift their spirits, Mom reminded the kids there were still more rooms to visit with plenty more dogs. Both kids perked up immediately.
Room to room they went until Andrew suddenly stopped in front of what appeared to be an empty stall. Looking inside more closely, he asked Gabriella to come quickly. Pulling her Mom to where Andrew stood, they observed a sprightly, ginger-haired pup with a long curly tail peaking out from a dark corner. Certain their eyes were deceiving them, the family stood frozen for a moment.
Eager to read about the pup, they looked at the sign on the stall but found no name, no breed, no age - just a blank adoption form posted on the stall.
Off to the main desk they went. Mom said, "Hi! There’s a ginger colored puppy we saw and there’s no information."
“Oh yes. Her name is Bear. She just came in," said the employee. "She’s 3 months old and a Shepherd/Chow-Chow mix. Looks like it’s your lucky day. She’s available!”
The family stood there speechless for a moment, until Andrew broke the silence. “Mom! Call Dad!” insisted Andrew.
"Mommy, do it! Call Daddy! Before it’s too late..." urged Gabriella.
“Good grief you two. I will. Just a moment,” said Mom. To the shelter employee, Mom asked, "Can we visit with the puppy until my husband gets here?”
“Absolutely,” said the employee. “I’ll arrange it.”
During their private visit with the pup, the connection was instant. Gabriella made an observation, “She looks more like a lion than a bear. Why would someone call her Bear?"
Andrew shouted, "Come here Bear! Look, she doesn’t even know her name.”
Then we can easily change it. “How ‘bout Ginger?” asked Mom.
“Nah,” said Andrew. “Nikki is better.”
“I like Roxy better,” said Gabriella.
Shouting aloud, out of the blue, “Simon’s a good name!”
Running into her Dad’s arms, Gabriella exclaimed, “Daddy! We can’t call her Simon. She’s not a he.”
Urging her Dad to approach the pup, “Say hi to our new friend Daddy, c’mon!”
“Okay, here I come,” said Dad endearingly.
"Wait," said Andrew. "I know. We should call her Simone."
“Simone,” repeated Mom. "That’s a nice name. Let’s see what she thinks? Hey Simone. What do you say?"
Simone yelps, "Arf! Arf!" Everyone laughed.
“Good call," said Dad.
"Thanks," replied Andrew.
“She’s cute. And looks like a Simone," said Dad. "But we still don’t know how well-behaved she is.
Now worried their Dad was having second thoughts, Gabriella and Andrew braced for disappointment.
Instead, Dad declared, "But who could resist that face. And that curly tail! With some training, she’ll behave just fine."
Overcome with gratitude, the kids toppled over their Dad. Curious and determined to be included, Simone climbed to the top of the pile claiming her place in the family.
Once home, the kids and Simone wore each other out running around their giant yard. Resting with Simone inside her shady doghouse, the kids cuddled close to their new best friend and shared a peaceful afternoon slumber.
As the parents watched their children rest quietly with their beloved Simone, they concluded it was more than luck or chance that brought the family together. The series of events leading up to that moment had to fatefully fall into place. They believed without a doubt, they were bound to find each other all along.