Fiction makes for interesting stories sometimes, but nothing is quite as intriguing as real life. Life rarely turns out the way we envision and usually makes a far deeper and lasting impression on our minds that the frivolity of a tale of imagination. Many events in the saga of life in my world have taken paths that are far different than any script I would have written had that been an option.
Our daughter Tiffany is a great example of this concept. My vision of having a little girl in the house was one of a sweet little darling that would be a joy as she grew into womanhood. Instead, it was an experience that took on the theatrics of two long-horned rams butting heads over and over. Her mother and I took our responsibility of guiding her through the transformation from little girl to young woman very seriously but the little girl in Tiffany often resisted. Her attitude was often less than desirable and because of this it was so amazing to watch the rapid maturing of our daughter as she began her freshman year of college. Being away from those who cared most for her and the sudden introduction of realities of life previously unknown to her caused an appreciation for things taken for granted beforehand. She continued to make great strides in personal growth and worked extremely hard for more than six years in completing under-grad and graduate training to become an Occupational Therapist. I am proud of her and the effort she put into the goals she set for herself and have told her that several times.
After completing her education, Tiffany got a job offer in Savannah, GA and moved there and worked for a time. While there she got a dog to help keep her company. It's a Terrier mix and is admittedly a cute little thing but it is an "inside" dog. I've never been a fan of any sort of animal staying inside my house. Well our beautiful daughter decided to take a job back close to home and has moved back in with us for the present time. So guess who, or what else has moved in as well! That's right! We now have an "inside" dog living with us. Actually, he's hilarious. More times than not, when I come home he comes running toward me barking like he's going to tear me apart and when he gets to the rug in the entrance hallway, he tries to stop and hits the rug and slides right up to me looking a bit sheepish. Sometimes he will hit that same rug when Tiffany opens the door to let him out to "do his business" and slide right out into the garage, rug and all. Not only is he hilarious, but he is a little bit paranoid as well. There is good reason for that, though, and it comes in the form of an almost three year old boy.
My grandson is a precious little sweetheart but can be a bit rambunctious and somewhat mischievous. He likes to try to get the dog to chase him and does so by kicking at him and generally pestering the ever loving stew out of him. Sometimes the dog chases him and sometimes he will bark and snap at him. Other times the dog will hug close to one of us trying with everything he's got to avoid my little grandson. It has become something of a challenge to try and make him understand that the dog doesn't like his style of rough play. It certainly makes for a lively and noisy time at our house when both the boy and the dog are there together.
In closing this post, I'll mention that another current event in life in my world is not developing according to my script. My Dad, "Grandpa" to the children and to my little grandson, is in the hospital having suffered several "minor" strokes. He is almost 80 and it's not that we were oblivious to the fact that something like this might happen sometime, but you never are really prepared for such an event. I'm fervently praying that he can recover and we can have him for a few more years. He really loves our little grandson and enjoys being around him and it is so precious to hear that little boy say "Grandpa" – it comes out more like "Gapa". A great grandparent is a luxury many of us never get to experience so every moment my Dad spends with my grandson is special. As I sit in my office and write this, there is a picture in front of me with my Dad, my son, myself and my grandson. Memories are forever!
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