Love can be a four-legged word

I look at you sometimes when you are sleeping. I check on you to make sure you are still breathing. Because honestly, I don't know what I would do without you.

I think back to the day I first met you, in that vet's office with the other puppies, and how you captured my heart from day one, as we brought you home that day. You would never know just how much you would come to mean to me.

Peanut in 2009 just a few weeks after I got him(he was the subject for an art project, I drew this picture for Art using the grid technique.)

It was my senior year of high school. I was full of dreams and hopes. I had been crushed by the weight of losing our family dog and having to sell my 2 dogs previously. But then I met you and all that went away. I didn't have to worry about what college I was going to attend or what career path I would take when I was with you. You didn't care. You were just happy to see me. You loved me for who I was. And you still do.

I stayed home for the first 2 years of college and you were there with me through late night studying, cramming for exams, crying about family drama or school, and more.

You were there with me the night I came home after the horrible wreck. You would lie right next to me as I sobbed the many nights following.

 You met my first love and you didn't really listen to him much. I should have taken that as more of a red flag. But you accepted him, because I loved him. And I love that about you.

I moved away for the last part of college and every time I came home for a visit, it was like no time had passed between us. We always missed each other like crazy, but picked right back up as soon as I walked through that door.

I moved back home and you were there when I was student teaching and crying my eyes out at night, because I was so nervous. You endured the tossing and turning of my anxious thoughts.

You were there when the hardest night of my life occurred and my first love, my fiance, broke up with me. When I felt rejected by everyone else, I know I would never be rejected by you. You let me lay on you and cry my eyes out. You always seemed to know when I needed to hold on to you.

You were with me when I left the church I grew up in. You endured my sleepless nights, my crying out to God, and just plain crying. You were there to be my friend when I felt like I had none. When so many turned their backs on me, I knew you never would.

You were there when I ventured out to a new church home. When I came back from church feeling alone, you sat by me and let me pet you. And I felt better.

You were there when I started making new friends and you welcomed them into our home and your heart, because you knew I loved them.

You were there when I got my first teaching job and I was so excited. Your picture graced my classroom full of dog-themed cuteness. I told stories about you to my students. And they all loved you just as much as I do.

You were there when I had to deal with even more family drama. As I still deal with it. You put up with my silent screams, my throwing of pillows, and my sobs shaking the bed.

You have always been there, through the ups and downs in my life. You have been with me through some really tough valleys. And some really awesome mountain top experiences. You are my movie buddy, my bike riding partner, and one of my best friends.

And one day when I have to say goodbye to you, it's going to be one of the hardest days of my life. Because you are such a big part of me. And I will always hold a special place for you in my heart. Let's not do that anytime soon, ok? The saying goodbye, I mean. For now, let's watch movies, snuggle, go on bike rides, and do life together. I love your four-legged self.

You are and will always be, my dog. My Nook. My Na-Na. My Peanut.

Peanut in 2010