When my brother Ricky was eleven when dad brought home a grown up dog name Tufty. Tufty was a tall lanky creature covered in soft, often matted, tawny fur. That spring Ricky got hit by lightening and had to stay home from school for a whole month. Mom helped him keep up with his schoolwork and Tufty stayed by Ricky’s side the whole time. Sometimes Mom found Tufty sleeping in Ricky’s bed. Mom never scolded them because Ricky was pretty depressed at the time. I think his fingernails were still black and his eyebrows hadn’t grown back yet.
Tufty got really upset when Ricky had to go back to school. Mom said he’d pace around the house all day whimpering. When Ricky returned at 3:45 Tufty would get so excited that he’d sometimes knock Ricky down in the living room. Then Tufty became protective and possessive of Ricky. He’d snarl and threaten to bite anyone who got too close to Ricky, except for mom. One time he bit me on the arm when I sat near Ricky on the couch. He did the same thing to dad, except dad threw shoes at him afterwards. Tufty was always watching. If anyone but Ricky tried to enter his bedroom, Tufty would first snarl and then go into a fit of barking. Mom tried to keep him outside but this made Ricky feel sad and since he was already seeing a therapist twice a week mom gave in.
Finally, mom and dad decided we had to get rid of Tufty after he attacked Granny. We’d warned her, but she never listened to anyone and wasn’t about to start now. We even tried to make sure Tufty and granny were never in the same room. The day after she arrived, on a Saturday, mom had to go out to buy some milk and bread at the corner shop. Granny and Ricky were playing cards in the living room and Tufty was outside barking. Granny let Tufty into the house and returned to her spot on the couch next to Ricky. That was it. Granny’s ok now. We were glad she didn’t try to run away from him and break her hip. Tufty bit her on the leg and when she stood up he knocked her down. Then he just barked and snarled at her until mom got home.
Ricky wasn’t as upset as we expected. He loved granny and was very shaken up after the attack.
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This is such an interesting voice! And really different for you. Really, I loved all your pieces for this week. What grabbed me here was the voice - and the quirky details. A boy that gets hit by lightning? Blackened fingernails & singed-off eyebrows. I love it!
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