"Abyssinia, Hannah"

The really good sitcoms aren’t just funny. They mix in the moments that make us cry. Today I had the sitcom equivalent of Henry Blake dying on M.A.S.H. Many of you already know that I had to put my Hannah to sleep today. It was of course a heart wrenching decision that has left me beyond sad. However, as with many of the great things in life, I wouldn’t be this low if Hannah hadn’t brought me so much joy over the years. So, in keeping with my resolution to find the joy and document the great stuff, I’d like to share a few stories about Hannah.

I became Hannah’s person the day she turned 5 weeks old. She was a big puff of black fur. She slept in the bed with me the first night and had a quite alarming way of waking me up in the morning. With her sweet puppy breath and razor sharp puppy teeth, she bit me on the nose.

That was on Monday. On Thursday my parent’s home burned to the ground. I was between college apartments – home for Christmas break and like them lost everything. Through the grace of God no humans or pets were hurt in the fire.

We celebrated a pre- New Year’s Eve party the day after the fire with the family of a friend from high school. I can still remember Mr. Johnson saying, “Chrissy, oh Chrissy, your puppy has left you a package.” Even with her accident she was the hit of the party. She actually house trained in the blink of an eye which was really saying something as we stayed at several different places before heading back to college for the spring semester.

She and I – okay mostly I – turned out to be afraid of living by ourselves. So, we had many sleepovers at my friend Tammy’s. I’m beginning to wonder if Tammy liked having me over – or Hannah over. : )

Later that year Jake, a beautiful Staffordshire Terrier, came to live with us. For all of you not familiar with the breed – a Staff is a pitbull. He looked big and tough but was the biggest baby ever. He and Hannah got along splendidly – mostly because even though he was 3 and she was 3 months old, she was the boss. Poor Jake. He had never been neutered and his “lipstick” was constantly popping out. This along with his tongue, were Hannah’s favorite chew toys. She was constantly biting one or the other with her razor sharp puppy teeth.

Young Chicco, our puppy now, reminds me a lot of Hannah when she went through this stage. I call it the teenage years. It is the time of a puppy’s life when you stop being their favorite place to lay and start doing exactly the opposite of what the human wants. Pretty much every morning for the next year, she would run and I would chase. I would cuss and she would run. I would plead and she would run. Finally, I would bribe and she would get tired and she would come.

Hannah grew with grace and was a cool dog to be around. As like many of our canine friends, she gave comfort and love unconditionally. She never held a grudge and was always ready for a good back scratch.

Thank you Hannah for allowing me to be your person.