Was there a toy or thing you always wanted as a child, during the holidays or on your birthday, but never received? Tell us about it.
When I was a kid, I wanted a dog so bad. I loved dogs, still do.
My first dog love was Sparky, a cocker spaniel owned by my mom’s choir director. There is a photo in the family album (which I don’t have) of me hugging Sparky on her porch. I can still remember playing with him in her basement while they made Christmas corsages in the kitchen.
My parents were not dog people and my sister was very afraid of dogs. A dog fight happened on her lap when she was very small and she never got over her fear.
Looking back now I wonder about my parents thinking, as I often do. One child begs you constantly for a dog and another is afraid of dogs. You have a house in a quiet neighbourhood and a big back yard. Would you not get a puppy? Maybe my sister would have gotten over her fear of dogs.
One day I came home with a kitten and begged them to let me keep it. I named it Madeline after my favourite book even though it was male. I think it was afraid of me. I remember my parents telling me “Cats don’t like to be mauled”…….. like dogs. I don’t remember developing a bond with it.
I guess it was a good thing because a couple of years later my dad was transferred to Toronto and we moved into an apartment. It was meant to be temporary while my parents could agree on a house to buy but they never did buy a house: we just moved to better apartments.
(A common theme in their marriage: )https://monicleblog.wordpress.com/2015/07/17/the-temporary-table/
As soon as I lived in a house…… in my twenties, I got a dog. Max.
I don’t want to write about my dogs…. Max, Nels and Betty. I loved them so much I’m starting to cry right and that’s not what this post is about.
I wanted a dog as long as I can remember and was a ‘dog person’ all my life but I don’t want another, nor a cat. I don’t want an animal to look after and the costs now are just too much.
I ‘gave’ myself dogs and had three wonderful, loving kids that got old and died. That’s enough for this lifetime.
In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Out of Your Reach.”
monicle's chronicles 
I feel your pain. I’ve always been a dog person and have had many grow old and die. We have three left, ages 15, 13 and 8. It’s a lot of work taking care of old dogs, especially as I age. The 15 year old has bladder control problems, the 13 year old has skin problems, and the 8 year old has become and escape artist. I now have mixed feelings about owning dogs, but I will always love them.