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   Sometimes, I act like things don't bother me when I'm around people just so I can appear as the strong one and help those that need it instead of focusing on myself. When I'm alone, like now, everything hits me like a train.
   My mom called me this morning and told me that our first dog as a family was being put down tomorrow and that we could go say goodbye today and spend his last day with him. We drove an hour and a half up to Brainerd to spend time with Dante one last time.
   It was so hard to see him again after a year and see how much his health had gone. He had small and large tumors all over his body, his hips were obviously causing him pain, and you could tell he wasn't all there upstairs. He still remembered my mom, brother, and myself though.
   Dante came into our family when he was about 8 or 9 weeks old. He was our dog until he was maybe 4 or 5 years old (give or take) and then when my family moved into a new house, the lease said that his breed, Rottweiler, wasn't allowed. My uncle agreed to take Dante so Dante was flown to California on my birthday. That was the saddest birthday I've ever had, even to this day. My uncle moves back and forth a lot so he decided that Dante would thrive and be happier if he stayed with my Grandma in Brainerd. He's lived with her ever since. We got to see Dante every time we went to visit my Grandma and he'd remember us every time like we were still his owners.
   Seeing Dante today hurt like hell. He's aged so much. A 13 year old dog is most definitely going to have aging, but he's the first dog that I've ever had that lived a full life and had to be put down from old age. It's not easy seeing a dog you've known their whole life and knowing that they won't be here when you wake up.
   I'm sure there are some people that will say "he's just a dog." Yeah, he's just a dog, BUT he was our dog and we treat our dogs like family. Dante is family and I'll miss him so much. I know I didn't get to see him much after we moved and couldn't have him, but when I did see him, his face would light up when he saw me. I'll always remember Dante and I'll always miss and love him.

                                                                                                                - M.