Once when I was a boy

My brothers and I found a bundle of abandoned puppies

My parents to my satisfaction said I could keep one to call my own

I was never really good at naming things

so I referred to my dog as Yo

 

It takes some smarts in a animal to survive the mountains

I suppose I have always walked a line between a guiding parent with potential danger close at hand

 

We, My dad, siblings and my new friend Yo, went out to get firewoon in our Big Red Truck

After loading the truck, not to far from home, I decided myself and Yo would walk home together

At the "Y" in the road, Yo shot up the wrong direction

For a moment I considered being persistant with getting him back to my side

But a Thought "I have tought him enough, that he can find his own way home"

So, I continued on

 

I got to the house before everyone else and began to make lemonade

The one who made the lemonade got to drink from the concentrate container it came in

I, having made the lemonade was feeling a mark of pride and joy in having I prepared a refreshment for everyone from our returning of a job well done

I will never forget that in that moment of mixing the lemonade, my eldest brother busting through the front door

His only words with the urgancy to be the first to report news says: "Dad ran over your dog"

My dad then came in the house

He gave me a hug and said he was sorry

That was the first time I heard my dad cry

 

My dad took me up to bury my dog Yo at the very intersection I gave him his freedom

My dad had placed him in a pillow case so I would not see him

Upon placing him in his shallow grave

My dad spun the pillow case, so that I would not see the blood stains

 

My brothers told me of the incident

How as they drove past the intersection, My brothers on the back of the truck

Yo came flying down the other road way as they passed

He began chasing them

Yo was getting very close to the rear tire

My brothers saw the danger and began arguement to who would jump off to save him

No conclusion was met before what we had all felt could be the outcome

Became the reality

 

After losing my dog in such a way

I had decided I never wanted a puppy again

But boys become men

Times change

 

For Christmas I bought my daughters a puppy

I would say that my heart melted for this young pup

We named her Mocha, because of her color

 

I would put her outside to go potty

and she would wait outside the door to be let back in

This morning I was looking at her and my cat through the glass door

Do to construction, they sat on a wooden plank leading to the door that is around a foot wide

 

It has been a heavy winter with alot of snow

The roof had built large Ice dams

Surely I noted the potential risk as Mocha walks under the eaves

But the snow and ice never slide from the roof in fridgid temperatures

This thought must have lapsed my mind

because today it was warm

The snow was coming loose from the trees

 

Without these thoughts present as I gazed at my pets through the door

I heard a crack sound from the roof above me

It would be a lie if I told you in that moment I didn't feel the danger

And at the same time I asked myself "what are the chances"

And in that moment the whole Ice dam and snow came of the roof

Hundreds of pounds

I saw the cat move in haste 

Mocha, I saw movement But I couldn't tell where to

Moving in absolute urgancy

I slipped the mud boots on at the door

The flat head shovel used for breaking the ice off the walk way stood feet from the door

 

Can I save my dog? I didn't know

Would I hurt her with the shovel? I didn't know

Was she crushed? I didn't know

Would she suffocate before I got to her? I didn't know

 

In that moment I was that little boy and my brothers who did nothing

I didn't want to see the same outcome with Mocha like I did with Yo

action was the only option

Digging as fast as I could

My frozen hands lifting the ice chunks

I called and I called her name

Hoping she escaped all danger

while in my present actions noted that the cat surely did

Only puppies don't move as fast as cats

I'm exhausted at this point and no sign off her

I am sure it was only 40 seconds, but it felt like 10 minutes

Maybe she ran off scared and isn't responding to me?

 

I noticed the cat sticking her nose to a small opening under the plank leading to the door

I heard a wimper

I then knew she was okay

 

she managed to cram herself in about 5 inches of head space under the very board that she was sitting on before the snow and ice fully covered it

Poor thing was so scared she was shaking

And so was I

Maybe there is somingthing to be learned here

Mocha didn't suffer the same fate as Yo

And I didn't have to Tell my girls that I killed their dog

There's a lot of what ifs 

I am Thankful!