Heaven goes by favour. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.
- Mark Twain

*Photo by Charlie Gomez

My girlfriend recently got a dog. A black, labrador-Belgian malinois mix with little patches of brown that only show under the sun. She and her family playfully named the dog Ellie after the wife of the old man in Disney's Up and, at first I took little notice of her, as she was just one of a litter that was to be given away. They already had four beautiful dogs, so there really wasn't reason to take notice of another one. Somewhere along the way though, I noticed that she was starting to become attached to this dog in a way that was different.

There had been one other dog before when she was younger, whose name was Lucy. The way that she told stories of her sounded more like a myth to me. Lucy, she claimed, was like a person who snubbed her at times when she didn't agree, a dog who liked to take long walks by herself, innocently pretending not to hear frantic calls to come home, who was tirelessly, fiercely loyal but felt that cheap, showy affection was beneath her, and who would protect my girlfriend even against her own siblings if she thought the horseplay was getting too rough, like an overzealous yaya.

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She began to train Ellie, and I started to see a side of my girlfriend that had been kept from me for six and a half years. I can’t help but to feel a bit of blame for her keeping that side from me, because I was with her the day that Lucy died. We were a new couple and she chose to spend time with me instead of overseeing Lucy in the vet, and that’s when she got the call. I remember her crying while on the phone and I have no doubt that our relationship has existed a little in the shadow of what happened that day.

It's self-centered and probably not the case, but in my mind I think God felt it was time to put Ellie in my girlfriend's life to teach me how to be a better boyfriend. Because in the short span of six months, I’ve learned so much from this dog.

From her I've learned that patience is more powerful than persistence, and can be a better indication of strength. Ellie is patient and waits. From her I've learned that being excited to see my girlfriend never gets old and should be a staple in every relationship. From her I've learned that kisses never run out--they can keep coming and in fact make you stronger the more you give. From her I've learned that sitting by her side and just watching without judgment is the best way to handle her restlessness. From her I've learned to not be needy. From her I've learned that no matter who wins the game, we both win the game.

Most importantly, from Ellie, I've learned that sometimes our existence, however complicated it is, which has evolved over thousands of years, might be as simple as this: that we were put here by God to make another person happy. Thanks, Ellie.

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