Man's Best Friend

We long for an affection altogether
ignorant of our faults.
Heaven has accorded this to us
in the uncritical canine attachment.
~George Eliot

These days if ever we are looking for our beagle (who is not a full-blooded beagle, apparently, as we were told by our vet, but I still call him a beagle), we can find him lying next to the Christmas tree. The lights are inevitably turned on...the kids do that first thing in the morning. Animesh's favorite cartoon is Speedracer, and Speedracer has a mischievous little brother for whom our dog was named after.

Unfortunately, we did not investigate the proper spelling of the name.

Oh, well. After 11 years, we ain't changin' it.

We found our hyperactive dog in a pet store in Ohio when we were living there for the first year we were married...Animesh and I have never had a Christmas as a married couple without Spridle.

This is Spridle's mopey face. But so darn cute. And, I believe he's still quite lonely...missing his annoying little sidekick more than he can communicate to us. As a result, we're feeling pretty badly that the last few Christmases our pups have seen little to no treats from Santa. Yep, it's been all I can do to get my act together to buy presents for humans...let alone the beagle/pseudo-beagle. So, this year I bought quite a few delicacies for Spridle's stocking, and both Priya and Deven purchased on their own some doggie treats at their school business fair this week. So sweet.

A few months ago Spridle pushed open a back door and ventured out for his own canine expedition. We're so happy that he was returned to us. We hope he's glad, too.


This will be our first Christmas in 10 years without our beloved little Kirby...and we're all feeling pretty sad. His stocking was hung with a lot of sentimentality this year, and Kirby is still included in every family prayer we say. I want to cry when I think about the loving legacy Kirby has left behind.

Spridle will undoubtedly do the same.