Exactly one year ago a very special puppy changed my life. There’s no denying that the pandemic affected us all. It confronted us with our greatest fears and reality. It pushed us to even face mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Being honest the pandemic brought me to feel lonely and I know many felt the same. To cope many splurged on extensive online shopping sprees or had pandemic babies. Me? Well, there was no way I was going to have a baby but I got a pandemic pup.
I’ve always had family dogs, but I was never 100% responsible for one of my own. Being so independent and busy, I never even thought I’d have the time to dedicate myself to caring for a pup. During the pandemic when life was put on hold this overwhelming feeling to adopt a puppy came over me. I went on an extensive search for months until one random day my neighbors offered me a baby pup that was abandoned, they had adopted her sister but couldn’t keep both. So, that day I adopted a chihuahua mix I named Lovely. I quickly feel in love with her. The next few nights were long and sleepless. Lovely was a very sick puppy and a few days later she tragically died. Her death hit me very hard. After having prayed for a puppy, I quickly lost her. Heartbroken can only describe part of the misery I felt.
My neighbors offered to give me Lovely’s sister, it was a hard decision because I was completely heartbroken but I decided to give it another chance and adopted her. My fear was on a whole new level that I didn’t even want to name her yet or have high hopes. I immediately took her to the vet and as I suspected she too was very ill. 3 different vets gave her absolutely no chance of life, they even offered to put her to sleep, which I obviously denied.
I decided to take care of her and give her the best last days of her life, officially naming her Lovely Hope. I did everything humanly possible to save her life. Thank God she got better. Lovely Hope has given me the best year ever. My life was plunged into joyful chaos with a lot of vet bills, chasing, biting and poop cleaning. One thing is for sure, nothing is better than coming home and seeing her excitement. Her favorite place is being in my arms for cuddles and hugs.
Funny enough, there’s no doubt she has my personality. Lovely Hope is a miracle and we needed each other. Her naughtiness, high-energy, cuteness fills my days with a lot of happiness. Lovely Hope has become my sidekick, I can’t imagine my life without her.
Be Lovely, Be You-Charlene Gonzalez
