Man's Best Friend

Three years ago, at the urging of our behavioral/developmental pediatrician, we got our son, Wil, a dog. And not just any dog - a retired guide dog. She fell into our laps. It is perhaps one of the best law of attraction stories out there - we reluctantly agreed he needed a dog, decided to start the process, and two weeks to the day we had the perfect dog.

Flicka has been the perfect dog. She is mellow. She is quiet. She is cuddly. She is sweet. She is loyal. She follows Wil around the house like, well, a dog. When she gets up before him she waits outside his door, curled on the hardwood floor, cold and uncomfortable, as opposed to any number of warm and cozy spots in the house, and listens for the first stirrings that mean he's awake. That dog loves him, and that boy loves her.

She just seemed to know she was his from the very first moment. We did a few things to give her that message, like having Wil be the first one to meet her when we went to get her, then he led her around our house when we got home, and fed her her first meal. But I think she just knew because she's not really a dog, you see, she's an angel, sent from heaven years before we met her, just waiting for us to open our hearts and home to her.

Recently Flicka got super sick and had to be hospitalized. The vet feared it was some scary and fatal illness. Fortunately, and $1,000 later, we learned it was not - she just ate a sliver of soap from the wastebasket. I have never in my life been so grateful to spend $1,000, and be reminded it's only money, and a special boy and his special dog is... priceless.

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Carrie is a parent and advocate of a child with special needs and even more special gifts. She blogs at http://carrielink.blogspot.com/ where this is pretty much her favorite topic. Carrie’s book, WIL OF GOD: Embracing the Relentless Love of a Special Child, is available in print on Amazon and all e-readers.