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Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781546250081 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | AuthorHouse |
| Publication date: | 07/11/2018 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 108 |
| File size: | 12 MB |
| Note: | This product may take a few minutes to download. |
| Age Range: | 9 - 12 Years |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
sparky
My story begins when I came to this world; I don't remember my mom, I was too young even when I was turned away from her. It was the custom of the place where I was born to move the cubs from her mother as soon as possible after birth, or at least until they could eat themselves. This is sad because you feel unprotected and lonely, your siblings to play and have fun are not with you either.
Fortunately for me, I was given to a home where they were cordial and even a little loving with me, it was a family with 7 young siblings among teenagers and adults. At first, the girls took care of me and treated me with affection, but as I grew up I felt that was already well adapted to my new home and stopped giving me so much attention and care.
Before my new independence, I decided to explore the grounds of my new house, of which I knew only a very small part. Little by little I ventured to go beyond.
I discovered that beyond the house, (which would be called back yard) was a huge place in which the father of my new owners planted some crops, there were also many flowers and other plants with strange smells but used for the family to make tea. I had fun long hours exploring and observing how other small animals called Grasshoppers jumped between the fields and the grass. I also found other small houses within the same field, but it was still too shy to go to them.
A few months since I had arrived, I became a Maltese very nice and polite (or at least I heard that it was said about me for my owners when other people knew me), I liked to eat cleanly, and be discreet when making my needs, never played with the things of my owners (although sometimes it was tempting to nibble one than other shoe or play with the hanging clothes on the clothesline), because I knew those things were precious for them.
Little by little, I began to look more closely at the neighboring houses. In one of those, was living a cat little warm and no gentle that did not allow me the access. This feline was the cause I hate its kind.
It was a day in which I was making my usual rounds, I relied on the kindness of the cat. Very politely I greeted him I said:
– Hello, I am Sparky and I live next to your door, I'm your neighbor it is a pleasure to meet you, what is your name?
For my painful surprise, this ill-mannered pussycat received me with a claw directly to my eye. Fortunately, my reaction was more or less quickly and I could move so fast that I wasn't half blind, the damage was reduced to a tremendous scratch on the inside of the eyelid, which was invested permanently, I never received any attention to heal, which caused me discomfort, a little blooding and pain for the rest of my life, as it always carved to find some relief. From that moment ended my good relationship with cats and I kept in a constant fight with them.
After this painful episode, drew my attention to another of the houses and began my cautious approach. The perceived as the leader of the flock; I mean, the mother, timid, and noticed my frequent visits. She invited me occasionally to eat, because apparently, I liked:
– Hey little, poor you! What happened to your eye? are you hungry? Would you like to taste some food?
Of course, I accepted willingly and with deep pain I tried to explain my embarrassing encounter with that killer crazy cat.
I liked to go that house, because there were a couple of little kids with whom was nice to interact, the bigger was 5 years and the small one was 3 years old. I became to be a frequent visit to that house, until one day I didn't go back to my old home. My previous owners seemed not to worry or bother them much my absence, and by my way, I enjoyed the days having fun with the cubs, sun myself pleasantly on the lawn and out occasionally to socialize with other neighborhood friends. Everything was perfect, with the exception of when my new owner who considered that it was a little out of alignment and decided to give me a bath.
It was the most terrible thing!!! I was trimmed and bathed with hair shampoo with a horrible smell and COLD WATER!!!
Then, the fun and pleasant part came when I escaped running towards the field and I rolled in the mud to dry myself. As soon as saw me coming back, they tried to catch me while I was screaming:
– Spark! - Come here! - you are in so much trouble dear! You have to take a bath!
– Whaaaat? Another bath? Oooohhh Noooo! Never mind!
Of course, they couldn't catch me, because I was much faster than them. Once I dried, I shook my body and all the dust came out easily all over me, as clean as after the bath.
My life was good for a few months until my canine friends came and met me. I found one cute dog that was going to become the father of my first puppies. After a few weeks, it was a strange feeling, suddenly wasn't as agile as I used to be and I slept more time too.
On the other hand, I had a lot of appetite and I felt something moving inside my belly and it was growing up. As the days go by, I felt increasingly fatigued, so I looked for a cozy corner to hide and be alone.
Finally, after much pain my puppies were born, they were five small ones.
My family was aware of the event and the kids were very happy, but their parents weren't so much. After all, they were patient and tolerant because they were paying attention and caring a new child that had just been born too. For this reason, they began to look for people who wanted to adopt my puppies, and one by one they were given away except for the last one that unfortunately did not survive.
Once again, my life was as before. After this event a few months went by and again I wanted to get out of the house. My owners noticed that and they did not allow me to leave. I had to find a way to duck by the hallway while they drew their car or when they opened the door in case someone rang the bell. Finally, when I ran to the street they were yelling at me to come back, but I didn't. So, there were more puppies and that began to be a problem for the family, because people can accept a puppy once, but no more. In addition to that, the mother was too busy with the new baby, that the middle daughter felt a little abandoned by her. I clearly remember one occasion in which the little girl was sad because her mother didn't attend and care for her as she needed, so she decided to take refuge with me. On that time, she just took all of my puppies far away from me, and that was so sad for me, I had no longer who to care for or feed. She approached quietly to me and began to tell me very sad that his mom didn't love her any more, now the mother just wanted the new baby and that she had ceased to be the baby in the house, I listen attentively and gave him a slobbery kiss as consolation, she thanked me instantly telling me:
– Thanks Sparky, do you love me?
To which I replied with another lick. She immediately said:
– Sparky, do you want to be my mom?
My answer was the same as the previous ones, she thanked me once more and asked me to feed her. She made herself comfortable as my puppies used to do it and she began to drink from my milk. I just took her in as I did with my puppies. Once she felt better she thanked me again wishing I would have been her mom and she arranged to get in the house.
Shortly, after I began to be a burden for the parents of the family. They didn't speak so lovingly to me anymore, if I went out to the street they wouldn't allow me to enter the house, or they welcome my return with a beating.
This situation became increasingly frequent, sometimes found refuge with some sisters who visited frequently to the children of my owners, their cousins. I was tried for them with true affection and respect, I remember that I was invited to go to her house which was a few blocks from mine. They asked permission to the mother to take me, and she accessed without problem. In a very short time I learned the way to their house, which was my refuge when things got bad on mine. When I wanted to shovel, fleeing and ran non-stop until the other house. When the girls saw me out when they opened the door asked:
– What happened to you Sparky? Why did you come?
Do they hurt you?
I could tell my face told everything. My life had been always like this, give birth to a new offspring in which at least one of them passed away, and a thrashing given to me from my owners once in a while. I sometimes ran away and when they were calmed I came back. Finally, the family didn't want me to return. Although I always loved them and I thanked them for the time they let me live with them I didn't want to go back; so I decided to stay at the cousins' house. Only, when the girls visited my previous family, I used to go with them to my old home. But only to visit them not to stay.
I can't say that the change was completely different because the grandmother didn't like the animals at all, when she saw I didn't come back to my old house, she told the girls in an angry way:
– Isn't that flea-ridden dog going back to her house? - I don't want it here!
But the girls, they wanted me to stay there, so in spite of the grandmother I stayed. They treated me with a lot of love, give me some candy, food, they washed and cut my hair; although that part did not change much, because at the end I was escaping to go to the delicious earth to roll up for take away the cold. They were building houses cozy and warm on chilly days, because the dogs we were not allowed to enter and sleep inside the house.
The years that I was allowed to lived in that house due the love these young people expressed were great. As it is common in our species, I corresponded with loyalty and gratitude to his affection because it is well known that the canines are a kind that often give their lives for their masters. I think they were interested in me, so much that at times we could engage in long conversations in which they expressed their feelings towards me. Despite not sharing the same language, we understood each other well.
However, abuse and negligence from the grandmother and sometimes by the mother continued in my life, fortunately they were not as hard as the previous owners but it was inevitable I escape to the street once in a while. In some cases, the punishment was to keep me out, so I had to sleep in the street, or they could get me wet with ice water or receive me with the blow of a broom. Finally, they tried to drive off my visits spraying me with a perfume scent so strong and unpleasant that I don't know how I didn't spoil my smell, because the odor was so intense that could be perceived several streets away. In my desperation to get rid of that smell I spent hours scrubbing mainly my rear on the ground, floor mats, or where I could. But it was useless, that smell would not go off from my coat in many days. The only good thing from this situation is that flies were far away from me.
The stories of my puppies were going from bad to worse because they were not wanted by the grandmother and the mother. They were advised by some neighbors who devised ways to get rid of them such as abandon them in a vacant lot far away from the house or send someone to do it for them. Despite my sadness, I went ahead although I also wondered why people can hurt such innocent creatures? Why do they want to end up with their lives as if they were worth nothing? I never understood why sometimes people is so cruel with us.
The day finally came when they considered that the solution was to get rid of me and they entrusted a person to put me in a sack and took me away to leave me there. And it was done. An unknown man got me into a sack and in a car, he took me to a place far away from the house and get me out of the sack, he went up to the car and left me there abandoned. I didn't know where I was, but my sense of smell could help me find the way to home. It is well known that the dogs we are guided by the smell more than any other sense. It took me a couple of days to go back because to find the way back was not an easy task. I finally got to the house almost dead of hunger, thirst and fatigue, when they saw me I perceive two reactions: the first one was the mother and grandmother who were astonished and said:
– Danged it! What on earth is this? How did you get back spark?
On the other hand, the face of the girls with happiness for my return, they also exclaimed:
– Sparky! What a joy, thank you for coming back! You're very Smart Little one!
The girls helped me to enter and they quickly gave me something to eat and water, while they were asking me if I was fine. The next day they gave me a bath followed by a meal so that I could get strong again. That episode was my salvation, because they gave up and stopped trying to find a way to get rid of me.
My stay in that house was due to the fact that we the dogs, are faithful and also grateful until death, the girls loved me and in spite of many things, it was worth to stay in the house for them; they would have liked to have done more for me, but their petitions in defense of mine were simply ignored. Whatever, I have to recognize that the abuse was reduced a little bit when I demonstrated my intelligence and loyalty to family returning home alone without help.
– If only they could hear me! I thought. I wanted to say in many ways that I did not intend to get dirty when I walked into the house, that it was not my intention to bother them when I went out to the street, that it is my nature and an instinct to survive of my species and to give life to new beings. In spite of the fact that sometimes they hurt me with their indifference and coldness their punishments or when they had a grudge against me, I was very grateful that they gave me a small corner in their home and the love and attention that I received from my young owners.
Sometimes I thought that one of them could bring some communication among us, I had the feeling that she understood when I wanted to say something, it was enough to look at me directly to the eyes and she knew what I wanted to tell her. I think that it is the most effective way to initiate a connection with us, the animals, and also with humans too.
How many times have you seen the expression of the eyes in others guessing how they feel? There is a saying: "the eyes are the window to the soul", I really think, that's right!
There were days much better than others. For example, when I was invited to pass into the living room for a few moments after having received a bath, or when the girls shared their food with me. Also, I loved some celebrations such as birthdays because they gave me a bit of cake; or in Christmas when there was a lot of food left over and It was a feast for me. I loved too the "piñatas", because when they were broken, I tried to get as many sweetmeats as I could, and also some fruit and nuts. Of course, I always managed to catch enough for some days.
I also remember that on Christmas they always made a welcoming manger in which they bed down a child that they called Jesus after celebrating his birth. They had figurines of people around, also many kinds of animals, and was full of lights around it and a large and warm focus within the little house, and in the center a cozy bed with soft cotton which invited me to stay on it. Carefully, I went into the crib and without intention to disturb I would curl up next to the child that was lying down there. What could be wrong with a bit of heat in exchange for having the most comfortable?
Of course, many times I jumped out when I heard a cry that said:
– SPARK!!! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING NEXT TO THE CHILD JESUS???
Of course, when I heard the screams I ran away in great anguish.
I also remember a fig tree in the back yard, from which I enjoyed it's figs when the ripeness make them to fall by themselves from the branches and its refreshing shade under which I spent hours sleeping. That was so good. What days, the most peaceful and happy of my existence.
I remember an episode that, at the beginning, it was not only mysterious but happiest also funny. It was after midnight on a common day, everything was absolute peaceful and quiet, I was sleeping in the courtyard as always when I suddenly heard up a terrible noise coming from the kitchen, it was as if all the pots had fallen down at the same time from the cupboard. Right away, I ran barking as tightly as I could to scare the intruder and warning that best outside, but when I used my smell I simply did not perceive the presence of any strange; anyway, I kept barking and I didn't know what or whom had been. After a few minutes running to see what had happened, they carefully entered to the kitchen, I was in front of them barking bravely and when they turn on the light, Oh, what a surprise! There was no one or nothing lying on the ground, everything was in perfect order and in its place. As you can imagine, my owners were nearly gooseflesh and ran out screaming that there were ghosts in the house. That scene was very funny and made me have a certain respect for being very brave in the face of the ghosts, since they knew that this event was repeated a few times and asked me if I had seen a ghost, I just scared it away with my barking. So, even though at the beginning was fun to see them scared, it was not funny to become the official ghost hunter of the family.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Traces of Love"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Madeline Rosales.
Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Dedication, vii,
Acknowledgments, ix,
Introduction, xi,
Chapter 1 Sparky, 1,
Chapter 2 Claudio, 23,
Chapter 3 Giacomo, 35,
Chapter 4 Thumbelina, 55,
Tips For Caring And Making Your Pet Happy, 85,
About the Author, 89,