Good Old Sam...

Thirteen years ago last spring we had an unforgettable day in the MacPherson family. After years and years of begging for a dog, our wish was granted. I was 14(just finished my freshman year), Krista was 9, Michael was 8, and Hope was 4. My mom let me in on the secret that my parents had gotten a yellow lab mix, a little puppy. They got him from the lab rescue. I could not believe they actually did it. I knew my brother and sisters would be so excited, but nothing prepared me for their reaction. My mom brought him in one day after school. She just walked in the house with this adorable little puppy in her hands. The kids just squealed! My brother who was quite the dancer, just started dancing (the butterfly in case you cared!), shouting "Oh yeah, Oh yeah, we got a dog, Oh yeah!" Priceless!
It took us forever it seemed like to decide on a name. Some that were in the running were Reese's(i don't even know why now!), Simba(he looked just like him), Max(i think), and others I don't remember. His name...Sam. I'm not sure how we got to that. Knowing my parents they chose it and directed us towards that name, letting us think we named him!
We had years and years of fun with him. He was a great dog! Very playful and loved attention. My favorite story is when he was a puppy and grabbed my sisters braided hair and starting shaking his head pulling it as if it were a toy. Her head was just following the pull of his mouth side to side. Krista just yelled "Katie, help!"
Well, Monday, my parents came home from vacation, called for him, and there was no answer. Good old Sam had died that day. He was very old and we knew it was coming. Sam dying has symbolized the ending of things in a lot of ways. My youngest sister just headed off to school and my parents now have an empty house for almost the first time in their marriage. Sam dying was like an official end of an era in our family. All of us kids are out on our own...well almost! My dad and a family friend, Mr. Mike, took Sam to Mr. Mike's house and buried him in the back of their property.
I loved Sam, but I'm not exactly an animal person. But when my mom called to tell me that he died, I was genuinely sad. He was such a good dog! I think my brother loved him best. Michael was Sam's buddy. So I know my brother may miss him most.