Dawsie Bear

It has been a teary few days thinking about the loss of my childhood dog, Dawson.  He was an important part of my childhood and brought a lot of joy into my life.  I thought I would share some of my happiest memories.

I remember the day we brought home Dawson my friends had a softball game at the elementary school.  My mom dropped Dawson and I off and we walked over to the swings.  Dawson was three months old when we got him and pretty good sized, but I picked him up and put him on my lap like a human and started swinging away.  It must have been a pretty hilarious sight, as all my friends ran over laughing but non the less they were very impressed with my new puppy.

Dawson was extra frisky in the snow and when you let him out in it he would hop like a bunny.  When we would go sledding I could always count on him to chase me down the hill and then pull my sled back to the top.  The snow would form into big clumps on his fur and by the end of an outdoor snow adventure he would have hundreds of snowballs hanging from his body.  I know my mom has some good pictures of this.

Another favorite time with Dawson was bath time.  It would change a usually very fluffy dog into a "Cher in the 60's" look alike.  You could always tell he was a little embarrassed:). 

Dawson had the sweetest personality and couldn't hurt a fly.  You hear stories of dogs destroying shoes and pillows but Dawson wasn't into that.  He used to carry my beanie babies around the house, lie down and rest his head on them.  Not only was he sweet, but he was just a plain wimp.  Once we let him out into the backyard and he accidentally ran into a deer.  Dawson took off like a bullet and the deer chased him around the entire house.   

My dad was trapped in a house full of women and Dawson provided the male bonding time that he needed.  It was common to walk down stairs and see my dad watching a Red Wings game in his jersey and see his faithful companion wearing his Red Wings collar lying beside him.  My dad thinks he is a big tough guy but I know he is a softy when it comes to Dawson.   

Dawson put smiles on people's faces and isn't this something we all wish we could do?  Wish I had that last goodbye but what I do have is many happy memories and for that I am very grateful.