An Unwanted Gift

She dumped me three days before Christmas

December 22nd

We'd been together for three years

We'd been talking about getting engaged, had even looked at rings

But she said she couldn't do it anymore, that we needed go to different directions

And then she picked up her box of things from my place, and walked out the door

I cried for a full two days, didn't get out of bed for anything except grabbing more tissues

And then I got a call on my phone

In all my pain, I forgot about the gift I'd already purchased

Non-refundable, of course

700 dollars non-refundable

A purebred Siberian Husky puppy

I had to go pick it up from a breeder that lived three hours away

I spent the whole drive cussing her out

It felt good to be angry instead of sad for a while, so I kept going

The breeder handed me the dog, a bunch of paperwork, and my receipt

It was a tiny little puppy

White and grey with bright blue eyes

It trembled as we got in the car, so I let it sit in my lap

It looked up at me with a look of pure gratitude the entire drive home

As soon as I got home, I posted an ad for it online

I didn't want the dog, and sure as hell wasn't going to give it to my ex

As I cooked dinner that night the dog danced around my feet, tripping over its own feet

I laughed

A week later, I'd had to buy a food bowl and leashes and things for it

For some reason, I'd even splurged on a big fluffy purple dog bed

The dog didn't even sleep on it

He slept with me every night

Another week later, someone finally responded to my ad

He had a farm with a lot of space, thought his kid would like it, and asked for me to drop the price to $100

I told him no

At first I thought it was because of the money

But as I sat watching TV with the dog on my lap, I realized I liked having him

I liked having someone to come home to

Someone who was always excited to see me

I liked to have a reason to get out of bed

A reason to go to the park or the store

I liked having somebody need me

And he definitely needed me

(His own snoring scared him, a protector was essential)

And I liked that the more time I spent thinking about the dog, the less time I thought about her

A day later, I took down the ad, and bought a collar,

Engraved with a tag

With my name and address on the back

And on the front his name

"Ardolf"

His name means "home loving wolf"

My dog got me out of one of the hardest parts of my life

And I'm forever grateful

As I sit on the couch and watch Ardolf play with the puppy my wife got me two Christmases ago

I know the joy he brings me is the best gift I've ever gotten