Engrossed in the movie Transformers, I reminisced about when driving to get a movie was a Friday night tradition for my family. I snapped back into reality only to hear numerous voices that drowned out my ears- my older sister crying, my mom counting, and my step dad silent. My sister’s cry was unlike anything I had ever heard as if someone had just died. I jumped up from the couch which caused the blood to rush to my head. Light headed, I could not believe my eyes. Our dog Djali, a restless Shih Tzu who was only 3 years old, lay motionless on the cold, hardwood floor. My eyes wide open, a heavy tear rolled smoothly down my face and dropped onto my arm. My step dad started pacing in the kitchen whispering to us, “I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry.” Dropping to my knees, I realized what happened. Whilst my mom was trying to pull the hair out of Djali’s ear, my step dad was holding him down, keeping him in place, and had accidently strangled him. My mom, on the other hand, was not ready to give up so easily. Immediately, she told me to breath into his mouth. Tears clouding my vision, I blew air into his tiny lungs; my mom, with two hands on his chest, said, “Come on Djal. Hang on!” We repeated the process, and my heart sank. Suddenly, Djali let out a huge gasp of air and he cautiously opened his beautiful brown eyes and looked straight at me. I was lost for words.

In this moment, I learned life is too short to wait for others to act, especially when someone’s life is on the line. I also learned that there is always a chance to help someone in need. Why wait?