The Freedom We Hold

I know I'm not the only one when I say that the pandemic invited a furry friend into my house. It wasn't my decision but I'm glad it happened to me. Due to the nature of my work, I'm constantly surrounded by people and I physically push my body to its limits every day. So when the days are quiet, I prioritise my time to be on my sofa with a film and hot chocolate.

When Gordita came into my life, she was 12 weeks old and an absolute riot. From the moment she walked through my front door, she was a hell-raiser...I guess that's to be said about all puppies. But here she was, a creature I was responsible for and I'd never had that before.

My daily naps were gone, quiet nights were constantly waiting for her to poop and I remember a moment thinking she was a big mistake and I shouldn't have gotten her. I almost had enough and I was ready to ask my sister if she wanted to take Gordita off my hands.

Until that day at the beach.

Gordita's vice is grass. Every time she finds a freshly mowed patch of grass or has a specific texture, she goes mental. Leashed or not, the zoomies will start and she starts rolling around in it and the happiness on her face says it all. Even when we fall into the same patch that we walk through every. single. day. she still finds it exciting and the zoomies will ensue.

But somehow, that day on the beach, everything was different. Or maybe I was. The first time I took her, all she wanted to do was eat sand and was petrified of the water so it didn't take much for me to decide against ever going back. On this particular day, however, instead of doing our usual route, we went to the beach.

I let her go unleashed and off she ran around the sand. The smell of the sand excited her and she was off on her little adventure sniffing everything new. From the insects, branches and little crustaceans coming onto the surface to take a peak. It was as if I was watching a toddler figuring out what the world was.

It was a particularly warm day and I decided to dip my feet into the water and then I felt a little tap on my calf. I turned around and there she was in the water with me. She didn't swim or go beyond where I was, but she was in the water! Slowly finding the courage to let her little paws paddle, it didn't happen then but it was still exciting.

Her little mischievous face glowed in the water and we ran around the beach for hours. As the sun started to set, we sat and watched people walk by, the birds flying in the sky and the wind cooling us both down. It was a day unlike we've ever had because that was the day we became best friends.

To be clear, she's the first dog I've owned. I had no idea how to train her or even be with her. As a first-time dog owner, it was all too much for me to handle and I had no idea what I was doing. However, that day, my anxiety dissipated as we played in the water together and it was as if I saw her for the very first time just as she saw me. When we got home, she even wanted to cuddle. She's an independent girl, she loves to sleep alone and be left alone at home, so this was a shock to me.

After that day, things just got easier for both of us. She's forced me to get out of my shell, to explore and venture out even if work has drained the life out of me because those adventures fuel me back. She's taught me that my haven goes beyond my home - the world is my haven and I shouldn't have any fear.

I hold that memory of us at the beach close to my heart. After that day, I took serious steps to heal myself for a better future (as well as hers) and it was all thanks to my Gordita. She was patient with my love and I in turn was patient with her, we've both grown so much closer since then and continue to do so with each day that passes.

The older she gets, the more I see her personality and who she is as a little pup. We still go to the beach and she still gets excited just as she did that day. The beach has become our spot and on days where life gets a bit too much, we know where it'll fix all our problems.