Who would have thought the day before Christmas could be more exciting than Christmas itself? It was December 24th and I awoke to the sound of screaming.  I immediately jumped out of bed and ran down the stairs not understanding what was happening. As I was making my way into my living room, I saw where my parents, my sister, and my brother were jumping up and down in excitement. What could possibly be happening to make them go this crazy? Well, not so long after all of the shouts stopped, I found out we were getting our very own dog! My eyes lit up with excitement when I heard the news. I was speechless. Ever since my other dog had passed, I’d been wanting a new dog; a best friend. Another pet I could play with when I was bored and share memories with. There was a white sheet of paper sitting on the table next to my parents that had a picture of the dog on it. He had brown hair with a white stripe down his head and he looked so adorable. I knew right then that this was the perfect dog for our family. He had a little furry tail and it was just what I had envisioned him to look like. I couldn’t wrap my brain around the fact that we were actually getting a dog.

Before I knew it, we were in the car heading off to Brewster, Connecticut to pick up our new puppy. I scurried into the car and sat impatiently for what felt like ten hours, but was really one and a half. All of a sudden, I heard the engine come to a stop and we arrived at a beautiful house that was brown and had trees covering it on the sunny day. The wind howled through the trees and as I took a giant leap out of the car, I shivered. I quickly rushed to the front door where a nice woman with short brown hair greeted and welcomed us into her home. I was with my mom and my sister and as I walked inside, and I could smell the scent of freshly baked cookies. I took a look around the large living room and noticed a large door. She said how nice it was to finally see us and I wondered how long my parents have had this set up for. As she was talking, my ear dozed off to a sound of barking coming from that same door. After she finished talking, she told us to remain where we were and that she would be out in a minute.

I saw her open the door and observed a glimpse of around ten puppies running around frantically. My heart jumped a little and she immediately came back out holding a puppy, the exact one I saw in the picture! I could feel a smile growing on my face and it was contagious. I wanted to run as fast as I could to hug and kiss him, but as the lady approached us, she handed him over to my sister who got to hold him first. I stood there with my hand on my hip in vexation. When it was my turn to hold him, I apprehensively gripped onto him in fear that he would fall. While she handed me this blue and green striped leash, I thought to myself how cute it was and how it totally suited him perfectly. I noticed he had a matching collar and I could tell it had never been used because it was in perfect condition. I pet his soft hair and as I was holding him, he was shaking with fear. After a minute or so, he began licking my hand and I knew from that point on that we would have a memorable, long journey ahead of us.

We left the breeder’s house and I made sure he wouldn’t slip away from me while I held onto the multi-color leash. I carried him into the car and placed him gently on my lap where he laid there and fell asleep for over an hour.

Once we arrived back home, I took off his leash and left his collar on. I hung his leash on the hanger in my mud-room and couldn’t wait to play with him. I could already tell he was so playful and loved running, which was the complete opposite of me.

As the years went by, I grew closer and closer to him and now I can say that is my best friend. Whenever I am bored I always love playing with him and taking him on walks with his green and blue leash. Over the years, his leash has gotten a ruined with rips and tears in it, but our bond is stronger than ever. I still look over at his ripped of leash that dangles on the hook and it reminds me of all the memories we have shared. We hold onto this as a symbol of love and compassion for one another and how you can overcome any obstacle if you have someone, or in this case a dog, right there with you by your side.