Man's Best Friend

Man’s Best Friend

         It was Saturday morning and after 8:00 a.m. for chrissakes! I couldn’t wait any longer, I had to get Jeff up and out of the house before he totally let go of himself. Rising on my hind legs, I started pawing frantically at the edge of Jeff’s bed as he lay asleep on his belly with his face mashed into the pillow. When my nudging failed to get his attention, I began to whine and let out a healthy bark to express a sense of urgency. Jeff rolled over and as he came face to face with me, I licked his cheek. Wow, did he have some bad breath!
         "Hey-a boy. All right, all right I’m getting up already.” Stumbling out of bed, I watched Jeff trudge down the hallway and into the bathroom to brush his teeth and take a whiz. Upon returning to the bedroom, Jeff slipped on a sweat suit and jammed his bare feet into his sneakers which were already laced up. Standing at his feet and wagging my tail furiously, I looked up at him excitedly. “Let’s go,” he said and I bolted for the door. Tongue hanging out and jumping around, I was really playing up this outing to the park hoping that Jeff would embrace my enthusiasm. Grabbing the leash and house keys off the rack by the front door, Jeff hooked the leash to my collar and we were on our way.
         It’s wasn’t hard to make him feel guilty about leaving me holed up in this small, one bedroom apartment all day while he was at work during the week. Right now, Jeff’s guilt was serving my plans quite well since I was getting him out of the apartment and to the park where I would get him to mingle with people, especially the ladies. I was on a mission to have Jeff build his confidence and regain control over his life. Even after having a near nervous breakdown almost eight months ago, he couldn’t completely give up on old Clyde. I knew Jeff was thinking that this early morning walk in the park was for me – but it wasn’t – it was for him. Of course, I loved the great outdoors but what mutt wouldn’t.
         Several months ago Jeff’s heart had been crushed by his then-fiancée, Dawn, when she told him she was having “commitment issues” and called everything off less than a month after their engagement. Funny, she hadn’t seemed to have any problem pledging her love to him when he slipped that enormous, glittering rock on her finger. It was no surprise then after Dawn called off the wedding that she didn’t give back the ring. Bitch! Anyway Jeff didn’t want the ring back; he was absolutely devastated when Dawn ended the relationship.
         Seeing Jeff struggle to move forward with his life after the break up was really tough. He began sleeping erratically and withdrew from his friends and family. He often had dark circles under his eyes from a lack of sleep and had developed a paunch thanks to Budweiser. Increasingly, he forgot about his responsibilities to me like taking me out for my regularly scheduled “business” or refilling my food and water bowls. After a few months, it became clear to me that the rejection and loneliness Jeff was feeling as a result of the break up was really taking its toll on him. I couldn’t remember the last time he smiled. The Jeff I knew and loved was fading away, but I was damned if I was gonna let him go. Realizing that he was in desperate need of encouragement to re-enter the dating scene, I began dragging him to the park each Saturday to break him into the idea of meeting new women.   
         The park, with its sloping hills and meandering paths, was already full of people when we arrived that Saturday morning. Conveniently located only a few blocks away from the apartment, it was a great place for Jeff to meet women and I was already on the hunt. Setting out on one of the main paths that encircled a pond I kept half an eye on Jeff while scouting the possibilities.
         A single woman is especially no match for a man and his dog taking a leisurely walk in the park. A perfect prop, I was eager to use my talents to ignite a conversation between Jeff and any available lady coming his way. In fact, my unusual breed draws women in like a magnet and serves as the perfect ice-breaker. Sure enough, a woman approached us not long after we had set out on the path. She had been walking briskly towards our direction. Her arms moved swiftly as her hands gripped little, black exercise weights. Catching sight of my extraordinary physique, the pace of her movements came to a halt.
         “What kind of dog is that,” she blurted.
         “He’s a German Shepherd-Beagle mix,” Jeff stated proudly.
         “What an odd mix,” she sputtered.
         Her large brown eyes kept dashing all over the place as her wide, full mouth flapped a mile a minute about my unusual lineage. She was quite tall with a huge rack but definitely too old for Jeff’s taste. What a talker! Within a few short minutes I droned out her high-pitched babble and began tugging Jeff forward in an effort to save him. It looked as if she was sucking the life out of him with her incessant rambling. Following my lead, he politely excused himself from the one-sided conversation and we were on our way again. We continued along the path and headed deeper into the park.     
         A small group of men and women passed us by evidently enjoying their morning run. My tongue flopped to the side of my mouth in a dopey smile while Jeff exchanged a “good morning” with the group. The great thing about going to the park is that nearly everyone there is in a good mood, so you can’t really go wrong. Up ahead, the path branched off into a narrower one that snaked away from the pond and led to a meadow.
         On our approach to the meadow’s edge, a woman was sitting pensively in a folding chair with a sketch pad in her lap. A piece of charcoal was delicately poised between her fingertips. Short and wiry with black hair cascading down her back, she had begun to scan the area just as we came into view. Rising slowly from her seat, she placed her pad and charcoal on the chair. Walking over to us, she remarked at my impressive coat and asked Jeff if she could pet me. Panting excitedly and wagging my tail to turn on the charm, my hopes for Jeff disintegrated when she mentioned that she and her boyfriend were looking to get a dog. While Jeff casually conversed with her for a few minutes about yours truly, I decided to take advantage of a little heavy petting from the bohemian stranger before we resumed our walk.
         As we neared the far side of the meadow, Jeff sat down on a bench and I flopped down next to his feet. Staring out at the verdant expanse, he looked so sad and lonely. I just couldn’t stand to see him this way and decided to let him know. I sat up and began barking at him to get his attention. Of course, he thought I wanted to play around so he disconnected the leash from my collar. Picking up a stick that had been laying in the grass, Jeff hurtled it in the air for me to catch. I ran like a lunatic and caught the stick in mid-air, slobbering all over it in excitement. Hurriedly, I returned the stick to Jeff only to dash after it again and again. We both got so worked up in the game that we didn’t even notice the young woman who sat down on the bench Jeff had vacated. After exhausting our game of catch, Jeff and I walked toward the bench to relax before returning home. Jeff collapsed on the bench and gave me a good scratch behind the ears before I settled snugly at his feet.
         “That was quite some game. You must be crazy about your dog,” commented the young woman seated at the opposite end of the bench. Her dazzling red hair looked bronze in the sunlight and her eyes twinkled like emeralds.
         “Yeah, Clyde’s great. Gives me unconditional love no matter what,” Jeff responded. His face full of tenderness, I rolled over so he could pat my belly.
         “I know what you mean. I had a dog for many years; his name was Zeus. He was a Great Dane. What a lovable dog. My name’s Claire, by the way.” She had a soft, sweet voice and a generous smile.
         After Jeff introduced himself, the two exchanged ideas for several minutes about the benefits of having old mutts like me around and from there the conversation just blossomed. Suddenly I began to see a smile developing around the corner of Jeff’s lips and for the first time in months he seemed to be enjoying himself. By the time they wrapped up their discussion with one another, it was nearly lunch time. Glancing at her watch, Claire confided that she was expected to meet with a friend for lunch.
         “It was very nice to have met you,” said Claire as she stood to leave. 
         “Perhaps you would like to meet up with me for lunch sometime,” suggested Jeff.
         “I think I’d like that. How about we meet here at this same place and time next week? There are lot’s of little café’s not too far from the park.”
         “Next Saturday works for me. I’ll meet you right here then.”
         As we headed back to the apartment, Jeff walked with a lighter step and a radiant smile on his face. I knew I would be holed up in the apartment next Saturday, but I was glad that one of us would be going to the park. After all, he needed it more than I did.