Saying Goodbye to a Dear Friend

Charlee Horse Evans 10/8/97-8/13/11

Almost 14 years ago, Serena and I were two crazy college kids who fell in love with a 12 week old Keeshond.  The first time we held him, he ate Serena’s hair and peed on my shoe, but it was love at first sight.  Buying a dog was an impulsive purchase, but we just had to have him.  And at that time, we figured we’d be old maids and roommates forever, so why not share a dog?  We named him Charlee, with an “ee” because we had to be different, Horse because we thought it would be a funny middle name, and Evans because we were in love with the character Ben Evans on Sunset Beach and had a thing for eating cheddar baked potato soup at Bob Evans on our way home from school in Boston in the evenings.  Charlee fit right in with us…he was just as crazy as we were.  And boy did we love him!

A couple of years later, I met Jerry, and eventually we moved in together and found out we were expecting The Girl.  So it was decided that since I would be having the human child, Serena would keep the furry child.  I’d be his part-time mom.  It was difficult to leave Charlee, but it worked out well because Serena and I lived near one another.  I have spent a lot of time with Charlee on the weekends, and The Girl grew up to love Charlee as much as we did.  Even though we weren’t with him all the time, he was our family.

This morning, Serena and I (and our husbands and children) said goodbye to our dear friend Charlee.  He hadn’t been doing well health-wise for awhile, and it was time for us to let him go.  I’m crying as I type this, not imagining that I would ever love a dog or any animal as I loved my Chuckie.  But even though I am so very sad that I will never see him again, I have so many fond memories of our crazy dog, from his sloppy kisses and love of riding in the back window of my old Geo Prism to his never-ending quest for food that led to him getting his head stuck in an empty frozen fish box and banging into walls.  I will focus on the fact that he lived a long life, and it was filled with love.  Rest in peace, Charlee.  We love you and miss you and will never forget you.

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