Stahlke Adoption

My Story

It used to be a quiet life.

For many years, Jonathan would go off to teach, and Mary would spend the day upstairs in her office, writing a big book on her computer. My buddy Dakota and I would take turns watching the house, being sure to let Mary know when that person with a big bag would walk on our porch and stick papers through the mail slot. When I wasn't on guard duty, I'd find a good spot to sleep on one of the couches or chairs in the living room. Mary even called me "Diva" sometimes, since I just loved to find the perfect spot from which to stretch out and survey most of the first floor.

Every night, Jonathan and Mary would take Dakota and me for a long walk in the neighborhood, and sometimes we'd even ride in the back seat of the car to a special park where we could run free. Then after arriving home again, I'd crawl onto my big bed upstairs, leaving just enough room to let Jonathan, Mary, and Dakota sleep with me for the night.

About two years ago, when Dakota and I were eleven years old, everything changed.

We didn't see Jonathan and Mary for a long time (over six weeks), and when they returned they had five short people with them. We had seen short people before, but they had never stayed longer than a day or two. These people, however, never left. I could no longer find a place on the living room couches to sleep--they were either full of people or their toys--and if I tried to curl up on the floor the people would come running through and step on me. And I don't even try to go upstairs anymore, because Mary's office and my old bedroom are different now--mostly full with lots of beds. So I spend more time now in my new bedroom near the dining room on the first floor, which is a little more out of the way. But even though I found a spot to rest, the house is very noisy. We four grownups get less sleep than before.

Other things have also gotten worse for Dakota and me. We don't go on walks anymore, unless the two older boys are feeling restless and ask to take us out (as an excuse for exploring the neighborhood). When we ride in the new car--they call it a van--Dakota sits between the boys in the third seat, while I have a bed on blankets in the front seat between Mary and Jonathan. We can't stretch out by ourselves in the back seat anymore, since the short people and their stuff take up so much room that I have to curl up tight. It's hard to ride that way when we travel for three straight days to Texas.

But the arrival of the short people has brought some good changes, too. At first, they were afraid of us and spoke words we didn't know, but now they talk to us in English and like to rub our heads (just like Mary and Jonathan!). During meals, Dakota and I wait behind the gate in our bedroom until we hear Jonathan reading from a book. Then they all start singing, and sometimes Dakota sings, too, because he's happy that we'll be out soon to find food under the table.

Those pieces of food taste good, but they're pretty small, so we've both found other ways to eat greater quantities of food. Mary and Jonathan have been pretty distracted lately and don't watch us quite as carefully. Sometimes Dakota has found the dog food bag open, and he eats enough food for a week--ALL AT ONCE! His poor tummy gets really big, and he mostly sleeps for the next few days. Personally, I'd rather eat better-tasting food, so once or twice, I've watched for my chance and climbed up on the table. Some of the short people don't clean their plates very well, and I love to do it for them!

It's pretty good to have them here, after all!
Alabama

posted by Stahlkes @ 12:17 PM