Many years have passed since you were a little puppy dragging everything along in your path.
Now you are a mature lady, calm and serene. You no longer look at me in bewilderment; you know my every move and my every word. And yet, you still get sad when I leave the house. You know, of course, that I will return and that I will have something for you. You are always there waiting for me when I open the door. You can no longer jump up on me, but you continue to show your joy and wag your tail.
All these years, we have been through a lot together. Yet, you accepted everything with immense patience. The other little dogs I brought home, my frequent absences, the neglect you endured. And every night, you continue to come into my arms and sigh before you fall asleep.
I know you would like me to be with you more. To go for more walks with me and not with others. For me to play only with you. To have only you in my thoughts, my mind, and my heart. I see it and I feel it.
How can I explain to you what I feel when I see your sad gaze? How can I tell you about the knife that cuts me to the heart when I don’t have you with me? How can I make you understand that even when I am away, I never stop thinking of you and caring for you?
I never stopped considering you a full and equal member of my family. A family, however, that now includes quite a few little ones like you. Little ones who, however, have known abandonment, hunger, and the streets. Thus, they have the same needs and the same rights as you to love and recognition. And in my effort not to neglect them, I neglect you…
I don’t know if I managed to satisfy any of your wishes. I know for sure that if you were in my place, if you understood my thinking, you would forgive me and perhaps urge me not to stop. Because the first thing you taught me is respect and love, things you had inherent within you. And I, in turn, tried to faithfully follow the lessons you gave me. And that is a small relief, an excuse perhaps, in my mind.
I will close with a promise. That from now on, it won’t be just my thoughts and my soul with you, but more so, my very body. My physical presence. So that you miss me less, and to show you that I love you just as much as you love me…
Your father, Giorgis
Dedicated to my first daughter, Melina…
