My Sweet Nurse

I forgot to mention what a sweet little nurse Mabel was during my illness.

The first time I was sick, she came running, curious to see what was in that trashcan Momma was holding. Then...she saw me putting stuff into that trashcan and she ran to the bedroom door and cried! Oh honey, if only Momma could've run away WITH you!

After that round, I decided I needed to be on the bathroom side of the bed...Mabel's side. I rearranged my pillows, got the t.v. remote, the overhead light remote, my little box of sinus sprays, lotion, tissues, etcetera (Good grief! I need a lot of crap to make it through the night!) all within reach. I got in and motioned to Mabel where I wanted her to be.

She always goes into my tiny bathroom to be able to have a two step "running start" which means: head into bathroom, turn left into the shower so her heiny fits by the toilet, pivot until facing the bed and LEAP! (Now I realize why Mabel loves going to her granny's in Baton Rouge: Mom has a 22 foot long bedroom! Mabel can actually run to jump on the bed.)

But as I lay there dying that night, I was appalled that she was planning to leap on the bed. But then she jumped so gingerly, I hardly felt her. She was quite confused and actually tried to curl up in the six inches of the bed closest to the bathroom. Finally she moved.

We would repeat all this after the next round. I fell asleep a for a bit and realized that I needed to start re-hydrating. I got up for some chamomile, brushed my teeth for the fifth time that night and crawled back into bed. This time, Mabel went straight to her new spot.

I was so proud and told her so. She crawled on her tummy to get closer, sniffing the air. She sniffed and sniffed and zeroed in on my mouth! She took a big whiff and blew her nose up in the air. With that, she looked at me so pitifully and took her paw and placed it carefully on my shoulder.

She spent the weekend sharing my bed generously instead of crowding me for space. And she was so obedient on every walk. In truth, she was the only company I could have tolerated for the the past few days.

I'm so blessed to have her...

That's the funny thing I've found about rescue dogs. People will commend you for rescuing a dog but in truth, all I've done is give her a home. It was she that rescued me.