We met Terry during one of the hardest times our family has ever been through.
After we said goodbye to Jake, who had been with us for so long, I could barely eat for a week. I woke up crying every morning, and just getting through the day felt like too much. Thinking about Jake still hurts, but back then, even keeping up with everyday life was so hard.
My husband was grieving deeply too, and he went through depression. His doctor suggested medication, but he didn’t want to take it.
Then one day, I saw a photo of Terry for the first time. She was a tiny, adorable little girl.
At first, my husband said he didn’t want another dog. He was scared of going through the pain of losing someone he loved all over again. I understood how he felt.
We also had Simba with us. To me, Simba seemed sad too. Of course, that might have been my own grief making me see it that way. There’s no way to know exactly what Simba was feeling.
We went to meet Terry, and we brought Simba with us.
When we got there, Simba wagged his tail at Terry. And my husband smiled, a truly happy smile. We had been going through such a hard time, and that moment stayed in my heart for a long time.
And that is how Terry became part of our family.
I don’t know what people might think about bringing home a new puppy after losing Jake. But for us, at that time, Terry was the one who gave us moments when we could smile again. To me, it felt like my heart was slowly starting to heal.
Even now that Terry is here, I still miss Jake. It still hurts when I think of him. And alongside that feeling, my love for Terry keeps growing.
Terry, who came to us when things were so hard. This is the story of how we met her and how she became our family.
To be continued.