Sophie

End of June, 2011

For as long as I can remember, Kelsey has campaigned for a dog.  She LOVES dogs.

Audra:  “No, you can’t have a dog.  We are all allergic, well, except for you,”

Kelsey:  “But they’re so cuuuuuute.” (said in a non-whiny way)

By end of June, 2011, when Kelsey brought me the same request for the umpteenth time (plus her cousins just got a puppy too!), something was different for me.  I started to think about it.  I don’t know why but I started to feel like maybe it’s the right thing to do.  Kelsey’s unusual medical symptoms were increasing and something in me went against all logical reasoning and I began to think this was a good idea.  How can an untrained, excitable puppy help Kelsey in any real way?  Maybe, I thought, she could at least lick Kelsey’s face and help her wake up when she passed out.  Or, maybe Kelsey, because she had a puppy to think of, would pay better attention to what she was feeling and think to sit or lay down so she wouldn’t fall and hurt herself when she passed out.  The first reason holds more water but really Kelsey will wake up with or without a dog licking her face – and it would probably be less startling if she didn’t have something licking her.  The second reason makes even less sense because when Kelsey is at that point, she literally is not able to process cognitively.  Yet, those were the only reasons I had.  How does it make sense to knowingly make a decision that seems to be the right decision but have it based on reasons that make no logical sense?

Once I caved in and said “yes,” Tim was an easy target for Kelsey.  So, the search began.  Within one day we found a miniature schnauzer that was $100 cheaper than all the rest and it was even here in our little town.  What are the odds?  I told Tim that we are not getting the fun and playful puppy of the litter.  I did that once and I’m not making that mistake again!  No, we are getting the most timid, sedate one of the bunch.  There was one phantom and two salt-and-pepper puppies in this litter.  From the picture in the ad, we wanted the phantom so I hoped and prayed that she was the timid one.  She was.  We brought her home one week later.  During the week of waiting, we looked through lists of dog names and decided on Sophie just because it sounded good and we could all agree.

                                  

She’s not been a bit of help in helping Kelsey regain consciousness.  The pup has made no difference at all in Kelsey’s actions just before passing out.  But, she has done more for us than I could ever have imagined.  From the end of June to the present, Kelsey’s symptoms got a lot worse and our concern brought a higher level of stress to all of us.  Sophie provided us with a focus that healthily drew us away from Kelsey’s medical issues.  Sophie gave us great distraction in learning to train her.  Sophie gave us laughs as a family when we didn’t seem to be laughing as much as we did before.  And, best of all, Sophie gives Kelsey comfort.  It’s on those nights when Kelsey is lonely or discouraged that Sophie sleeps in bed with her.

Why did I listen to the voice of “unreason” and decide to get a dog?  Because I paid attention to the peace I felt about getting her when I was thinking about it.  It’s a peace that only makes sense if you are a Christian and know that God has plans for you that you don’t even know about.  Ps. 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.”  Some versions say “cease striving” instead of “be still.”  In other words, stop trying to do everything yourself.  Stop trying to figure it all out.  Stop trying to make sense of everything.  Stop and know who is in charge.  God knew exactly what we needed and when we needed it.  He knew the reasons.  And then He put all the pieces of the puzzle in place to make it happen.

Oh, recently I looked up what Sophie means – “Goddess of Wisdom.”  Hmmmm.