I think the biggest part of the magic of the Universe is just remembering the details.

In the movie “Groundhogs Day” Bill Murray has a line where he observes, “Maybe God has just been around a long time and so He knows everything.” Sometimes It feels like that when the dots connect for me. When I am really tuned in It feels like I have always known how those connecting dots of thought transition from dream, to the fruition of said hope, into my waking reality. Unfortunately most of the time I can be distracted by the day to day so that the stretch is too long that the distance between passing blur of daydream and wishful thinking to the actual and real physical manifestation of that desire in my current life is so far from inception that I might not even recall that I had wanted it in the first place. Sometimes…

I might not even recall that I had wanted it in the first place.

That’s not what happens here. This one I remembered instantly. It started innocently enough, just a transient thought about names. I was driving to work one day random thoughts passing like cars on the freeway and I remembered a friend, and his dad, who was named Dutch. I had never heard it before I met him and I loved it at once. It sounded so strong yet reassuring, active yet fun. That was years ago and it was filed under “Cool Names for Someday”.  By this time my baby having days were long gone and I was just commuting to work and thought aloud, “maybe we’ll name the dog Dutch”. Shrugged it off and continued day-dreaming.  Matter immediately forgotten.

“maybe we’ll name the dog Dutch”

About a year after that, we decided to get a puppy. It was completely out of the blue. Early December, and we figured, sure why not? Let’s get a puppy for Christmas!! This is the type of completely together and thought out parenting style we are working with on a daily basis. Between my husband and I, it’s a constant roller coaster.

I had heard of a website called Pet Finder.com from a local TV news show. Adopting was the only way we would even contemplate getting a dog. Besides being absolutely appalled at puppy mills there was no way we were forking over a thousand bucks for a dog. Sorry, that’s ridiculous. I mean sure I wanted an adorable little Yorkie pup but lets not get carried away.

I typed in my search parameters. Search Area: Los Angeles and Orange County. Breed: Yorkshire Terrier Sex: No Preference Age: No Preference. DONE.

A silly little boy with a side cocked head and the sweetest little eyes looking right at my heart.

In an instant a page full of faces filled up my screen. Older dogs, younger dogs, brothers and sisters, all shapes and sizes of Yorkie and teacup Yorkie and all kinds of mixed up Yorkie mutts. About half way down was a tiny little ball of black and tan fur. I clicked the thumbnail and his picture opened up. A silly little boy with a side cocked head and the sweetest little eyes looking right at my heart. I started an email to the foster family. This had to be good. I mean look at that face! Who wouldn’t love to snuggle and love on that adorable fuzzy little puppy face?! I threw all my cards on the proverbial table. I started the email with my love of animals, our wonderful family, I may have exaggerated a bit on the back yard area and fudged a little on whether we own or rent but closed with my moms volunteer work at the animal shelter just for good measure. All in it, to win it. Fingers crossed, pretty please, with a cherry on top. And. Send.

I got a call from THE FOSTER LADY

A few days later I got an email from THE FOSTER LADY, she wanted to talk by phone for an interview! Geez, I wondered what that meant. I had heard that adopting pets could be a difficult, I hoped for the best and agreed to the call. She asked about a vet and whether we wanted his ears cropped. I gave her our cats vet and said we would never do that, so cruel. I asked how long she had fostered and she said she’d newly returned to it since her boys were a little older and in school more often. The younger one was slightly autistic and required a little more attention at times.  We chatted amicably for a moment.  I crossed my fingers that this was a good sign.

A phone call and a few more emails

That phone call lead to another few emails. She was technically supposed to inspect our house but her sons were difficult on long car rides. Could I just email photos? Of course!! Can I fill out this information sheet and send it back? My pleasure! A few nervous days and then she called and said he was ours! She was going to bring him over to our office in just a few days, after he was neutered and his next round of vaccinations were finished.

I was overjoyed! We had told our 15 year old son already but the dog was going to be an early Christmas surprise for our 5-year-old daughter. I rushed out to the big brand pet store and got a bed and the exact food he had been eating so as to not upset his tummy. He got oatmeal shampoo and fuzzy chew toys and some dog treats. I bought a harness and a retractable leash with bags on board. Oh my goodness I was getting a puppy!

Oh my goodness I was getting a puppy!

The next few days I wanted to spill the beans so badly but I kept it zipped and soon the day was here! She was dropping him off.  Today.  I could hardly stand it.  The minutes ticked slowly by and I watched the clock and window to the parking lot quite equally. She text her imminent arrival and soon I heard her kids clamoring out of her SUV in the parking lot below. I returned to my desk to play it cool. Jeff, my husband slash co-worker, was laughing at me from the other office. My childlike excitement was adding amusement to our normally lackluster morning routine.

I heard her two boys in the hall before I saw her shadow pass the window. The soft knock on the door and a few stern “Shh’s” and I opened the door. She stood in front of me, a small slender blonde woman dressed in standard issue mom clothes (denim capris, tennis shoes, bad bra and a tee shirt) with two sandy blonde boys on either side, the smaller one wearing an obviously hand me down Superman tee shirt. We all said hi. All their eyes were on me. My eyes were focused on the tiny ball of black fur in her arms. She extended her reach towards me, pushing his soft warm little body into my hands.

My eyes were focused on the tiny ball of black fur in her arms.

“Here you go! He’s all yours!” She smiled and made sure he was secure in my grasp before letting go.   The boys were immediately into my office climbing on chairs and inspecting the foreign surroundings.

“What? Oh, OH! Oh yeah! I mean, oh my gosh he’s so cute! Oh holy geez look at him” Yep. That’s me, totally playing it cool. No? Oh yeah, I, a grown woman, turned into a giant blubbering fool over a puppy. But this wasn’t just a puppy. This was our puppy. He was staying. He was staying with us, forever. “Oh thank you! Thank you so much! I can’t even begin to thank you for choosing us!”

He chose you.

“Oh, well now. You’re welcome! I am so glad he has found a good home. To be honest I didn’t know how I was going to choose.” She was gathering some paperwork and adjusting her bag on her shoulder. “There were over 100 responses to his picture! You can thank him actually” she said pointing to Superman. “He chose you.”

“Really?” I asked, looking at the small boy. “Did you help mom read the emails?”

He stood still staring at me silently as his mom answered for him.

“No, I couldn’t read all those emails. I knew there was no way. I was sitting on my bed with my laptop open. Looking at pages of emails and he crawled up next to me and said, ‘pick this one mama’ and pointed to yours. I read it and liked it so I replied.”

“Wha?…Um, Wow.” I looked at him and then back to her, “Over 100 emails huh? And he just picked ours? Wow.”  I looked at him again. “Well I am so glad that he did. I can’t even begin to tell you how excited we are that he is coming home with us. Honestly, thank you so much. He’s just so cute.”

He took a special liking to this little guy. He’s even the one who named him.

Superman was standing next to me petting the puppy on my lap as his mother spoke to me. His eyes glancing from mom to dog to me as if we were all in a conversation only he heard.

“He took a special liking to this little guy” she said gently tousling Superman’s softly curled hair. “They like to play hide and seek in the laundry together. He’s even the one who named him.”

“Oh yeah? What’d he name him?” Interested to see what kind of a name he would choose for our tiny friend.

“Well,” she started her rehearsed statement “the boys usually name all the fosters that come to us. I have explained it to them. They know that the names they give them are only temporary and the new families like to pick their own names.” She looked at me and then at her son knowingly, obviously having been there before. “Any way, he started calling him Dutch.” she laughed a little. “Such a funny name, huh? I don’t even know where he got it.”

No, she didn’t.

But I did.

Tears welled up in my eyes as the powerfully magic memory of my random thought materialized right in front of me.

“Well, I like it.” I looked at the boy my heart in my throat. “And just so you know, this time. This name. It’s not changing.”

I pulled the puppy up off my lap, so both the boy and I could see his furry little face.

“Hello Dutch. It’s great to finally meet you.”