It has been me that has been unable to sit down and write the blog, life has become difficult and complicated and I did not know how to write about the antics of a crazy dog when my mind could not stay focused. We all go through tough times in life and that is a great equalizer of this world. No matter how strong our mask is, life is not easy for any of us and the journey has bumps along the way. We all have to learn the “big” lessons, that the friends we thought we had, may not really be friends when you have nothing left to offer. People will hurt others on purpose and overall life is not always good. People are not always human. At my age, I should know these things and I do, but every so often life finds a way to remind me not to be so trusting.
My worry and stress started, when I left for New York to get my Nin, my Dad came to DC to drive my mom and I. It was then that I found out that my Dad was in kidney failure and would need a transplant. He had been on a list, was starting dialysis and my mom nor my sister were a blood type match for him so neither could donate. I knew I was a match, but I also knew with my Muscular Dystrophy that the doctors would never let me give a kidney. I was scared and devastated. I never knew anyone to go on dialysis and stay on for more than a few years before they passed.
I am your typical daddy’s little girl. I am the youngest. It was not always like this, we had our troubles growing up. He spent more time with my sister because she, like he, was the athletic one and they had their sports to bond over. But as I got older my Dad and I bonded on a more adult level. Not to mention our love for action movies, TV programs, politics and a good debate. Over the last few years in DC, my Dad has been my rock, my light in the storm, reminding me that I am never alone. It never has occurred to me throughout all these years that he might not always be there for me.
It was great joy in the Flores' household when we found out that my sister was approved to donate a kidney as part of a living donor chain. Since she cannot donate directly to my dad, she donates to someone who donates to someone who donates all the way until there is a match to my Dad. The chain that my Dad and sister were in was 7 people long, starting with my sister and ending with my Dad. There was a sigh of relief when the doctors gave us the transplant date Aug. 7.
I was going to have to stay in DC for the surgeries. I had work obligations and in San Francisco, I would only be in the way. My Mom had enough to deal with and did not need me around. As the day approached, I became more nervous about the surgery and about both my sister and dad being in the hospital. It was these nerves that resonated with my Nin. In her doggy sixth sense she noticed. At first, it was the little things, she would behave a little better and be a little more attentive, constantly surveying the situation letting me know that she was there.
On the day before the transplant was to take place my Dad went to the hospital with chest pains and the transplant was called off. The next morning he went back to the ER and ended up having open heart surgery. My world fell apart, I was in DC and my Dad was having surgery in CA. As soon as my sister called to tell me what had happened, Nin came to me, gently placed her head on my lap as I heard the news. For that day she stayed with me in bed, which is not usual for Nin, she stayed still but always had a paw on me so I would know that she was there. She even poked her head in the shower as if it was her job to check on me.
I have seen my dogs react to my behavior, I have seen them be difficult when my mood was bad, be silly when I am silly and be stubborn, well all the time, but this was different. She was just there for me, not assuming, not demanding, not asking for food or to play but just being by my side. We have managed to get through the rough patches together. Each day my Dad gets a bit better and stronger and Nin becomes more and more her rambunctious doggy self. But for a few days there, I experienced her potential, as my support and a service dog. I am continually amazed by her each day, as she becomes more and more of a necessity in my life. When some people look at her they see just a dog but in her I see my physical and emotional strength.
