How old is Bambina now… nine, ten years old? I can never remember whether Wes found her his junior or sophomore year. “Bella Bamina Diablita,” we named her. Very loosely translated, “Pretty Little Devil Girl.” For such a tiny kitten, she was awfully feisty.
She loves her “brother,” Banger….rubs against him, sleeps next to him, follows him in the yard. Like any brother, he alternately tolerates and ignores her…but they’re chums, you know, pals. I frequently come home to find the two of them on the couch (where animals don’t belong), curled up next to each other.
Anyone who knows Banger, and I am sure Bambina is no exception, knows there is something wrong with him now. Her brother is sick and she may not quite know why, but she knows. He has good days and bad days anymore; sadly, more of the latter. A stroke or two will do that to even the best of old dogs. His favorite thing in the world was always a walk… gotta mark the entire neighborhood, you know. As important as territory is, though, these days he’s not always up to claiming it. His gait is sometimes awkward and he often looks up at me, confused and unsure. But tonight, after working a twelve hour shift, and really just wanting to fall into a chair, I came home to find him looking like he was up for a stroll. So we gathered leash and bag and set out the door. Tonight was a good night for an old dog.
Bambina followed us out the door. Never venturing past her own driveway, she waits for us to come home, frequently hiding in the bushes and jumping out to scare us as we turn up our walk. But, half-way down the block, I turned and was amazed to see a silhouette slinking along behind us. Never has she followed so far. When we reached the corner I thought surely she would turn for home, but onward she came. Another half block, and she was still with us, slinking from shadow to shadow. I marveled as she turned another corner, and another, following us the duration of a 35-40 minute walk, always on the dark periphery, but always close at hand.
What, after ten years of waiting at home, while her brother and I headed out on our strolls, made her decide to tag along tonight? It was no different than any of a thousand nights. After a decade, did she suddenly become brave and curious? Or, like me, does she worry maybe her brother’s time is short and she’d like to spend as much of it with him as possible? I’m sure I have no idea.
But as we strolled along together in the darkness, the smell of night-blooming flowers in the air, and trees dripping from the recent rain…just the three of us…it was one of the happiest moments of my life. Theirs, too, I am sure.
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Bambina never went on another walk with us. Banger died October 9th, 2010, three weeks short of his 15th birthday. We miss you, dear old friend, but we'll see you again.
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Bambina never went on another walk with us. Banger died October 9th, 2010, three weeks short of his 15th birthday. We miss you, dear old friend, but we'll see you again.
