Downer
Roughly 15 years ago, I desperately wanted a black and white parti-color cocker spaniel. I would've sold my tiny child soul to get my hands of that dog. A deal was made- if I could make it on the honor roll my dream would come true. I did my part and was excited to finally get my hands on what I wanted.
Then my sister piped up "why does she always get a dog? I've never had a dog. I want a dog". My mother decided it was time to play fair and indulge her other child. Around this time, my great-aunt's dog had a litter of puppies. It was decided that instead of the cocker spaniel we would get a dog from the litter. My great-aunt brought all of the puppies to our house so we could take our pick. My grandmother wanted a tricolor black, white and brown puppy. I decided we had to at least get a black and white puppy to appease my wounded soul. My sister spotted a puppy that had crawled away from its siblings and was sleeping against our couch. The unimpressive tan and white puppy didn't want to play-it just wanted to take a nap by itself. My sister decided this puppy would be perfect.
We all protested her choice-who wanted such a boring, unimpressive puppy?- but in the end it was the right choice. That unimpressive puppy-originally dubbed snowball and then named Tiger after the dog on the Brady Bunch- grew into an impressive specimen. Much like the ugly duckling, nobody expected a handsome dog to grow from that unimpressive puppy. Nobody expected the reserved puppy that wouldn't even play with its siblings to turn into the dog that ruled the block. The quiet, hidden puppy that grew into the sneaky, smart dog that could steal and hide with the best of them. The dog that threatened the life of every delivery worker, no matter their company or affiliation.
That dog that was originally unwanted grew into a family pet who was much loved and will be greatly missed.