Our Miles With Miles by Terry Trautman
Those of you who have read my offerings in Pen It! know that I often write of experiences on the many miles of our travels whether by car, air or ship. This too is about our journey with miles or more correctly, Miles. You see, Miles was our beloved golden retriever.
She was a very sweet, mild mannered, friendly (unless you asked a squirrel) and lovable companion to have around the house. Her favorite pastime was leading us around on the people trail in Columbus on her twice daily required (by her) walks. We would refer to these treks as aromatherapy. You just wondered what was going on in her mind as she sniffed her way along the trail. “Oh, yes, that’s Brutus, but he peed a hundred feet further north yesterday.” “Hmmmm, I missed that squirrel by only a few minutes.” “Don’t worry, Terry and Linda, I’m eating grass because I like it. My stomach feels just fine.” “Here come some strangers. Gotta get the tail started.”
Miles was an integral part of our lives for fourteen years. In that time she developed some very reliable habits. I never figured this out because the door to our pantry does not squeak or make any sound when opened. Miles could be literally snoring and oblivious to life around her until one of us opened that door. Zoom. There’s Miles. Further, she was never asleep nor more alert at our meals. Those big brown eyes and doleful brows looked right through you with very high expectations of instant gratification for some juicy morsel that tasted soooo much better than the dry crappy stuff of her normal fare. This is not unique with her but when seated, if your hand is hanging over the arm of the chair she invariably walked under it expecting, almost demanding a good scratch.
Miles had another talent. She liked to write. For years, she was the author of our annual Christmas letter and became very popular to the recipients of them. The evidence of this was never more apparent when one year I decided to give her a sabbatical and substitute for her. Big mistake. The outcry was instant and clamorous. She also wrote a nice letter to the pet dog of the people who bought our prior home. She was quite envious that they had erected a protective fence for Sadie instead of the shock collar she wore.
But time began to take its toll, so slower of gait and deaf of ear (a blessing because she could no longer hear the doorbell), we began to notice the inevitable deterioration in her long life. Sadly, on March 28, 2013 we bid Miles a bittersweet adieu as we sent her to doggy heaven:
We saw the road was getting tough
And the hills were hard to climb
So he closed your weary eyelids
And whispered “peace be thine”
It broke our hearts to lose you
But you never went alone
For part of us went with you
The day God called you home.
Terry Trautman is a native of Columbus, IN, graduated from Columbus High School in 1956 and Valparaiso University in 1960 with a business and accounting degree. In 1971 he graduated from the Kelly School of Business at Indiana University with an MBA in Business Administration. His career path included Irwin Management Co., Cummins Engine Co. and U.S. Bancorp where he served in various financial management positions.
He is blissfully retired and enjoys an active life currently as Treasurer of the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic and First Lutheran Church both in Columbus. He and his wife, Linda, sing in both choirs. His hobbies include photography, scale modeling, traveling, reading, painting and drawing, a love/hate relationship with the game of golf and, more recently, writing. He is the author of “My Columbus was Different from Yours”, a collection stories about growing up in Columbus, IN in the late 40s and early 50s.
