Animals, pets specifically, provide friendship many of us are lacking in our everyday lives. Loyal, understanding, forgiving. On this episode, Amanda opens with a tale on pets, before special guest Brian Williams joins us to dive into the topic of animals and unique friendships. You won’t want to miss this episode of SMIRK!
Welcome to Smirk. A podcast that covers society and culture through a storytelling lens. Part creative writing, part discussion, and always interesting. Each week our hosts brings a story to the show, a story they wrote themselves, which is immediately followed by discussion on the author’s moral or theme. These stories can cover any topic the host wants to discuss, it can be lighthearted or more serious. No one but the author knows if these tales are truth or fiction, and part of the fun is guessing while you’re listening before the reality is made clear. We want to hear from you! If you want to share YOUR story, join the conversation by writing in to mystory@smirkpodcast.com, and include your moral, or you can let us guess at it. This is the podcast that looks at truth, fiction, and reality. With a Smirk. Don’t forget to subscribe to Smirk and share the show with your friends!
Want to read Amanda’s story “A Dog’s Paw” in full? Think you can identify the moral or theme for this episode? Read it below, and then take a listen to the podcast.
A Dog’s Paw
Timmy was a difficult kid.
Not to say he didn’t have his highlights, but it could be a troublesome project for his single father, Steve, to maintain discipline and order with young Timothy. Rambunctious, sure. Intelligent, definitely. Irresponsible and defiant, absolutely.
For far too long, Timmy had cast his father’s requests and demands aside like the wind. His selfish disrespect had grown fierce and nearly unfathomable. Timmy was angry at the hole his mother’s absence left in his life, and Steve was at his wit’s end with how to steer this ship around. Then, a solution dawned on him.
As they left the pound with their new dog, a lovable stray mix of god knows what and without a name, Steve immediately regretted getting Timmy a pet. The young boy barely showed any interest in the animal other than to shove her away and yell at her for excitedly licking every inch of his person.
“What do you want to call her, Timmy?” Steve asked nervously.
Timothy threw the dog in the backseat before exclaiming, “How about dumpster fire? This dog is already annoying, can we give it back?”
Steve sunk his head. This attempt at teaching his son responsibility and giving him something to love was already a colossal failure. He looked back at the door to the pound, contemplating returning their new puppy, but what message would that send? His son needed to learn to care about more than just himself, and Steve believed in his heart this pup could be the key.
“No, Tim. Get in the backseat with her, and let me know when you think of a name”. His tone was firm, and as rebellious as Timmy could be, he wasn’t an idiot. His dad was not messing around.
The car pulled away from the pound and this young dog was bouncing everywhere possible, excited to start its new life. Timmy, on the other hand, stared the animal down with a hearty dose of resentment.
“Why do I have to take care of this idiotic dog?” he thought to himself as he rolled down the window, allowing the pup to stick her head out the window. At 55 miles per hour with tongue at full wag, the pup was having the time of her life. New family, new car, new life. Timmy, on the other hand, just looked at her with disdain.
With no provocation, the pup became even more excited, almost uncontrollable. Timmy yelled “stop it you idiot, simmer down”, but the dog became even more energetic. As Timmy went for the leash, it happened. At now 60 miles per hour, the animal leapt…straight out the window.
It was insanity, and Timmy completely missed grabbing the leash. The pup was all the way out the window, with the leash out of range, when reflexes kicked in. Timmy SCREAMED for his dad to stop the car just as he simultaneously lunged forward. He had one, and only one shot, and his hand – through sheer will or some holy miracle – caught the pup’s rear paw just as she was almost completely out of the window, and would face certain death.
Timmy held on for dear life, even as the animal swung back at the car and whined at the impact. She was hurting, but she was alive. Steve finally brought the car to a stop, there on the edge of the highway. He turned around and saw his son, his difficult, selfish son, grasping desperately at the paw of this poor animal with an obvious lack of knowledge when it comes to issues like gravity.
Steve jumped out of the car, swung around to Timmy’s side, and gently brought the dog down safely to the ground. Timmy jumped out of the car, panicky and visibly upset. Without thinking he ran to their new pup, who was excitedly pretending as though her recent near death incident never happened, and Timmy grabbed her and hugged her with every ounce of energy he could muster. The adrenaline was fading, and still Timmy held her closer.
As Timmy’s eyes began to tear up, so did Steve’s. They both sat there, on the side of the highway, holding their new pet close before Timmy was finally able to speak. “I think we should name her Spring”, which they both laughed at for a good long time.
It was that moment, that very moment, that Steve finally knew his family was going to be just fine.