Grandma and Scout

I could hear my grandma talking from down the hall. I wasn’t surprised, she often talks to herself when she thinks no one is listening, but she was talking louder than usual, so thinking she need something I got up to check on her. When I walked into her room I realized she wasn’t talking to herself, but to the dog, who was doing a good job laying down and blocking the way to her bed.

“What are you doing in here Scout?” she asked, giggling at him.

I wasn’t surprised to see him. He’s gotten pretty old and doesn’t get up much anymore, but he still tries to follow her wherever she goes in the house. She is to frail to simply step over him and he is so old and lazy that he’s not inclined to get up and let her pass either. We were at an impasse.

“Come on Scout, get UP!” I said.

This was mostly pointless, because we’ve realized over the past few weeks that he’s gone mostly deaf. So I started jumping up and down trying to make it seem really exciting to follow me out in the hallway. When this didn’t work and she was starting to wonder if she would ever go to bed. I tried to pick him up, but I knew this was pointless too. He weighs sixty pounds and when he realizes that someone wants to pick him up he roles onto his side and makes himself dead weight. Then suddenly he got a burst of energy and up he got to wander to bed upstairs.

They would be reunited about eight hours later in the living room. Her sitting in her chair, him laying in the dog bed next to her, trying to stick his head under her feet. They’re buddies, and I’m their caretaker. I put on her favorite movies, The Princess Bride and Catch Me if You Can three times each this week (so far). I let him out 15 times at day when he starts barking at the backdoor, and then go outside and bring him in when he insists on sitting in the very back of the yard and staring aimlessly at the fence. We go on walks around the house every few hours so their legs don’t wear out.  There are moments when I might go stir crazy, but I can also hear her giggling and talking to him from anywhere in the house.

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