Short Stories and Tall Tales

Saturday Morning Surprise

My family and I live in a new subdivision outside Kansas City, Missouri, called Sherwood Estates. Most of the names of the streets and parks are named after the characters in the book “Robinhood”.

We live on Robinhood Circle. That’s where I got the name “The Hood”. I’m always giving nicknames to things.

I was almost five years old before I found out my real name was Brianna not Bree or occasionally Poopy. Most everyone calls me Bree. My Dad calls me Poopy and sometimes BREE---ANN---A! My Mom calls it a phonetic pronunciation. When Dad yells my name in three separate words, I am fairly convinced I’m in trouble.

My Dad calling me Poopy in front of people does not embarrass me and never has. He yells Poopy lovingly, even though I’d prefer to be called Bree.

If you are ten, so am I. I’m also about the same height and weight as you and other ten year olds. Usually my brown hair is in a ponytail. Does all this sound normal for kids our age? To keep me busy my parents sign me up for soccer, volleyball, plus dance classes. My family tells me I’m a really good dancer. I won a trophy for being the most outstanding dancer of the year at my dance studio so I guess some think I can dance. My Dad always kids me about the trophy. He jokes about having only two people in my dance class. The other girl broke her leg and was in a wheel chair all season. He’s always joking like that but at the end of a recital he’s always clapping and yelling the loudest for my performance.

Practicing dance can get on my last nerve sometimes. But the thrill of being on stage entertaining an audience makes the practice time bearable. The costumes, the smell of makeup, the music, and the roar of applause keeps me going. Who knows, perhaps one day, if I practice enough, I might become President of the USA. They say everything is possible, right.

I’d been walking our neighbor’s dog, Holly, for several months. When I went to the Caldwell’s to pick up Holly a few weeks ago I got a surprise.

Mrs. Caldwell invited me in and took me to the garage where they kept her. Holly had become a mommy and had four tiny puppies cuddling her in her bed.

When I first saw one special tiny puppy, the word MINE rattled around in my brain.

As a reward for walking Holly, Mrs. Caldwell gave me the pick of the litter For as long as I can remember, a little voice from somewhere inside my head talks to me. We argue about what to do just like a brother or sister would do if I had one. I called the voice Victor.

On the way home, Victor, my little voice said, “If you want to convince your dad to let you have this puppy, perhaps you should use the word “ours’ when you show him. You know…like in ‘our’ puppy. It'll make him feel as if the puppy is also his.”

I agreed. Good plan.

I stood on the front porch of our house, holding the sweetest black and white spotted puppy you’ve ever seen. I called for my Dad: thought about it, then called my Mom for added support.

“Oh Daddy, he’s so cute.” I said. He starred at the pup from inside, looking through the screened door, and then stepped outside for a better look.

I lifted the tiny puppy up so my Dad could see his dark brown puppy eyes and smell his fresh puppy breath. I pushed him up close and he licked my Dad’s nose. My Dad’s head jerked back in surprise. The pup wiggled, I giggled, and then he licked my face, too.

“He’s sooo presh- ush,” I said in baby talk. I hugged the puppy snuggly to my chest and swung him slowly back and forth and from side to side.

“Oh, Daddy, can we keep him? I’ve always wanted a puppy. I’ll take care of him: I’ll feed him and: I’ll take him for walks: I’ll make his bed every morning and keep his room clean. I’ll even teach him to brush his teeth,” I said. (Perhaps I went too far with the cleaning his room part.)

My Dad looked at me kinda strange when he heard the teeth brushing statement. “I’ll be a good mom to him, and be his bestest friend.” I said in more baby talk.

I usually call my father Dad. In this case and under these circumstances, Daddy worked far better, especially, when said in my best begging and pouty tone of voice. I even gave him my sad-eyes look and stuck out my bottom lip for emphasis.

“He’ll be a great watch dog, too,” I added. “Watch dog! All this mutt could do is WATCH a burglar steal our stuff.”

“Wouldn’t his barking sound an alarm? I saw a show on TV…

“Okay, okay,” my Dad said. “I see your point and don’t want to get into a debate over something that will probably never happen.” Dad picked up the puppy, looked him in the eyes and then to me and then back to the puppy and then back to me. I’m sure I saw the pup smile at my Dad because my Dad smiled at him. He handed me the pup.

“Brianna, we’ve been through this a million times already. No dogs.” he said.

“Oh, please Daddy please. He’s the last one of the litter and my friend’s mom will give him to us for only fifty dollars.” I said.

“Are you crazy? Fifty dollars? I don’t even want a dog and you’re asking me to pay $50.00. She should be giving me $50.00 to take the mutt off her hands.”

“About the $50.00….” Dad cut me off in mid-sentence.

“It’s not a matter of how much he costs. The responsibility of having a dog is huge,” he said.

“I know, but I’ll take care of him. You won’t have to do a thing,” I promise.

I didn’t think this was the right time to tell my Dad the $50.00 didn’t include a check-up at the vet’s office plus his shots.

Mom heard the conversation while standing at the door. She moved outside to give me added support.

“He’s the perfect size for her,” she said. “We’ve been promising her a puppy for a long time now. I think she’s mature enough to take care of him.”

As I’ve already said, “a dog requires more than petting now and then. A dog is like another member of the family.”

“Like having a brother or sister?” I asked. “Uh, Uh, kinda,” Dad said and he looked at Mom standing beside him.

“I can take good care of him,” I said quickly. I nodded my head.

“He needs everyday attention.”

“No problem”, my head nodded faster.

“You’ll have to feed him every day and make sure his water dish has lots of fresh water.”

“Okay, no problem”, I kept my head nodding up and down.

“A dog needs to be walked a couple of times each day and most of all he has to be walked before bed.”

“I already walk Holly, the dog from next door,” I said.

I could see my dad weakening and I nodded my head faster.

My Mom saw the same thing and said, “I think the responsibility of caring for a puppy will be good for her.”

“Are you sure this is the puppy you want? Dad asked. “There are lots of puppies to choose from.”

“Yes, oh yes, he’s prefect for me.” I didn’t want to go into a “search for the best puppy” stage just in case Dad changed his mind.

“He’s everything I could ask for. He’s exactly what I want,” I said. “Please Daddy… please.”

I crossed my eyes as I looked at my Dad in hope I would add a little humor to such a tense moment. My head was bobbing so fast I was getting sick to my stomach. I knew Dad and I were on the verge of a positive puppy decision.