I lost something that was very valuable to me and I’ll never forget the joy I’ve experienced. I feel so heartbroken yet relieved. There was a reason I called this special someone Angel. The day before, we were laying down on my bed. His white, curly, soft hair was touching my cheek. His small heart-shaped nose was wet. His paws touching my hand. His pink tongue licking my face. His presence next to me is what I wished it was like many more years. Little did I know that this was going to be my last pleased memory of my dog. My best friend. The morning of, I woke up in a relaxed mood to watch movies all day. I grabbed my Tinkerbell blanket and went into the living room. I turned on the TV and put on the Passengers movie.
I reclined the couch and covered myself. I started the movie, and a few minutes later I heard prancing movements. It was my dog. He jumped on my lap and rested his head. About forty minutes within the movie he went outside through his doggy door, to go potty. I was so into the movie, I was interrupted by continuous knocks on the front door. I paused the movie and stood up to check the pupil. I saw my front neighbor and his girlfriend. She was crying. I was confused but, I didn’t think much into it. I opened the door and the most unforgettable words came out of his mouth. “I’m sorry but your dog got ran over and he didn’t make it.” I tilted my head and was confused. I thought it was a joke, so I turned around to see if my dog was on the couch, but he wasn’t. My heart stopped. He kept on talking, but I couldn’t hear anything except seeing his lips move. I ran outside to check it out myself. In my peripheral, I saw a red extended circle. That day forward I despise the color red. I turned my head completely to one spot and saw my Angel in the middle of a puddle surrounded by his own blood.
My heart completely sunk all the way to my stomach. I squat with my hands over my face. It was hard for me to cry. My throat was hurting like something was stuck. I borrowed the girlfriend’s phone and dialed my mom’s number and put the phone against my ear. My mom picked up and she was giggling in the background. I knew I was about to burst her emotions as quickly as I pop a balloon with a needle. I said, “Mom, Angel got ran over and he’s dead.” She was confused and said what. I guess she didn’t hear me since I was hyperventilating. I cleared my throat and repeated myself, “Mom, Angel got ran over and he’s dead.” She had a change in emotions and yelled to her friend, “Go back to my house!” I was glad my mom wasn’t driving because who knows what kind of reckless driving my mom would have done. I gave the phone back to the girlfriend and ran back inside the house to wake up my brother, Gio. I patted on him multiple times but he didn’t wake up. So, I yelled at him what happened and instantly he woke up. I learned that day, that you should never wake up someone from hours of sleep telling them the traumatic news.
His eyes were crusty and he had dried saliva across his cheek. He lifts his left leg over his right and got out of bed limping. He looked very confused as if he thought he was sleepwalking. I was still crying. I had dried tears and recent tears all over my face. I can hear my heart pounding through my ears. Gio and I looked over the open front door and saw a crowd hurdling around my precious Angel. As we ran outside, I heard the sound of a truck coming towards me. The muffler roaring, and the tiressquealing. Through the clear front windshield, I saw the tears running down my mom’s face. She opened the door and left it open. Her hands over her face screaming and crying. She saw me crying and yelling too. My mom ran towards me putting her arms around me. I felt comfort from her presence. It was like a crime scene except it wasn’t a person. It was my dog. My best friend. Lying on top of his own blood. Many neighbors surrounding him with different facial expressions. Cars slowing down looking at my dog like if it’s a 290 car accident, in Houston. The front neighbor had a white plastic bag on one hand and a water hose on the other. He picked up Angel and I saw blood dripping between his fingers. I looked away and saw Gio walk inside the house. Gio has been through enough trauma in his life, he’s already used to the numbness and the cycle of losing someone.
The neighbor walked toward my mom and tapped her shoulder and said, “I’m so sorry, but what do you want me to do with your dog.” My mom responded, “Bring him to me.” I felt the pain my mom had, it was as if my mom lost a child. A four-year-old child. As the neighbor was walking toward us with Angel in his arms, my mom folded her arms as if she was carrying a newborn baby. We both sat down on the hard concrete floor and crisscrossed our legs. I saw my mom’s tears running down her face dripping down to the plastic bag. It was my turn to hold Angel. I folded my arms and carried him as if I would carry a newborn. I felt the warmth through the bag. Angel ’s presence was still there, but it wasn’t like the day before when he was on my bed. I was and still am shocked. As time passed by, my mom and I drove to the nearest vet hospital, BluePearl. We decided to get Angel cremated, so he can be with us. As the veterinary walked us to a small room where we will be saying our goodbyes, I saw a happy dog licking their owner. We entered the room waiting for the vets to finish cleaning up Angel. The vet entered the room with Angel wrapped with a thick, soft grey blanket.
She gave Angel to my mom and she left the room and gave us as much time we needed to say our goodbyes to Angel. This was difficult for us to cope with. I was heartbroken yet relieved. The reason I was relieved was because two weeks before Angel got hit, he got fully blind from both eyes and his stool was bloody. Angel was getting sick, and I really feel like he wanted to go to doggy heaven and have the ability to see again, in heaven. His paws were stiffed. His heart-shaped nose was dry. But his hair was still soft and curly. His presence wasn’t existing anymore but still with me in my heart. The reason I named him Angel, was because I believed God gave me a best friend that was meant to be in my life and will always be in my life, spiritually. November 12, 2017, was a heartbroken and mournful day I will never forget. Overall, I feel upset but I’m happy to experience the joy I had with Angel. He had so much joy in his little heart he made everyone in my family feel loved. Angel is my dog. Angel is my best friend. Angel is my Angel.
