It has been said many times that great things come in small packages.
This was definitely my dog Ebony, who was an 8-lb Chihuahua. Tragically and unexpectedly, I had to say goodbye to her shortly before Christmas. She was 13-and-a-half years old.
Two years ago, Ebony and her sister Ivory came to live with us after their human mama and my bestie Lori passed away. At the time, my symptoms from brain injury were quite severe. I was worried I wouldn't be able to take care of them properly. However, the thought of them being re-homed somewhere else was out of the question due to their age and medical issues.
I called Ebony and Ivory "the girls.” To me, they were humans and I'm sure they thought the same. I spent a lot of time with them on the couch, snuggling and sleeping. Back then, I was sleeping between 12-18 hours a day. Ebony would bark if they needed to go outside, remind me to feed them their meals and treats. I am a very heavy sleeper. Ebony would pounce on me and bounce around, lick my face and bark until I woke up.
Every morning, Ebony would kick my bedroom door open and scratch my side of the bed and shriek until I got up. In the beginning, I found this quite annoying. I would tell her "go to bed" and she would, but she always came back to stalk me. Ebony was relentless. She was also my shadow. Wherever I went in the house she followed me, including the bathroom. Ebony had no boundaries and I had no privacy. But I didn't mind because she was such great company.
Ebony's perch was on top of the couch in front of the living room window. Every human, dog, cat and bird that went by received greetings from Ebony. It was a common sight to see her little face pressed up against the window. When I left the house, she would sit on her perch until I came home. Every time I parked in the driveway, I would look up and see Ebony's happy face and wagging tail.
Chihuahuas are known to be yappy little things and Ebony was no exception. With me, she was like a drill sergeant. Ebony was the boss. She told me what to do, no exceptions. She was very bossy! I never had a dog that was so strong-willed and demanding as her. At the same time she was so loving that I allowed her to think she was my boss.
Ebony was extremely smart. She knew I wasn't well. She had a face that was always full of expression. On my bad days, her lips were pursed and she didn't bark as much. When I had better days, Ebony would prance around in circles (like Chihuahuas do) happily shriek to get fed, be taken for a walk or picked up for a snuggle.
Thanks to Ebony and Ivory, they provided me routine, structure and emotional connection that I badly needed. Because I wasn't able to talk much, having conversations with humans was not a common occurrence. Ebony and Ivory didn't care if I stuttered or was at a loss for words. They were accepting of me wherever I was at that time. This meant the world to me during a period when I regarded myself so poorly.
I believe there are no coincidences and that everything happens for a reason. Ebony came into my life to help me and my purpose was to provide her a loving home for the last chapter of her life. She used the last of her energy to lick my face before she crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. We were both blessed to have each other. Even though I feel it wasn't long enough, I wouldn't trade what we had together for anything.
