Are dogs truly man’s best friend? I can’t answer that question, but I would like to tell you all about this girl’s best friend, my dog cooper. In 2015, I began to beg my mom for another dog; we already had an older dog named Holly. Christmas season rolled around and every day I pleaded my case again and again. I promised the usual “lies” that I would feed him/her every day, I would train him, and I would walk him. However, Christmas came and went and I was still puppy-less. I pushed aside my disappointment and enjoyed the holiday, realizing a dog of my own might never happen.

Hope resurfaced in February as my birthday drew closer. Since my birthday is so close to Christmas, I already had everything I could ever want-except a dog. Once again begged my mom, did research, and just begged some more. Soon, I could see my mom wavering and coming around to my point of view. That’s when I began to turn into a secret agent. The first time we got a dog my mom insisted that we would definitely not be getting a dog. Then to my complete surprise, on Christmas morning my dad marched in carrying a little golden retriever puppy with a bright red bow tied to her collar. We named her Holly in honor of the holiday. I knew my mom could be trying to trick me by insisting we weren’t getting a dog, so I did some snooping. First, I checked her email to see if there was anything from dog farms. I didn’t see a specific puppy related email, but I did find a clue: my mom forgot to delete an email asking a woman to email her at a different address. Instantly, ecstatic, I knew I had to check. I then went to the new email and typed in what I thought would be the password, and it worked. Soon, all of my hopes were confirmed. I then saw my mom was going to pick out a dog very soon! Elated, I couldn’t even begin to contain my excitement. Later that week, I looked in my mom’s recently deleted folder and there I saw the cutest dog that has ever existed. Staring up at me, with snow-white fur and big black eyes was my dog. The contrast between the light fur and the dark eyes was breath taking. I am now very ashamed of my snooping, and I wish I had just waited so I was completely blindsided. However, at the time I thought it was one of the best things I had ever done. I cracked the code, and I was saw the most beautiful dog on the planet.

My family gave me the puppy on my sister’s birthday. She is four years and two days older than me, and her birthday landed on a Saturday that year while mine was on a Monday. She goes to UGA and could only come home to celebrate our birthdays on Saturday, and then she left again on Sunday. My sister had helped my mom and dad pick out the dog, so she wanted to be there when I got it as well. I hate opening presents because even if I really love something my face doesn’t show it. So, when my sister and mom came in holding my dog, I didn’t really show much emotion. I was happy and excited, but not over the moon like they thought I would be. However, on the inside I was going over the moon a thousand times. Even though I had seen pictures of the puppy, I didn’t believe he was mine until I held his tiny body in my arms for the first time. She eventually wore me down and I told her how I meddled. She was mad, but at the same time, she thought it was funny how far I was willing to go to find out about my present. We couldn’t figure out what to name this beautiful puppy. He is a boy so we began to brainstorm. My sister loved the name Winston, but I wasn’t really feeling it as one of my best friend’s dog is named Watson. My older brother, the epitome of all things redneck, wanted to name him Bubba. My brother plays football, baseball, and he loves hunting and fishing more than anything else.  Charlie drives a pick-up truck, which is also named Bubba. I thought it was pretty funny, but my sister hated it. She would not agree to let this dog be named Bubba. We decided to let his middle name be Bubba, and after much discussion, we decided to name him Cooper.

The rest of my 2016 didn’t go as well for me and my family. My dad starting dealing with lots of stomach problems at the end of 2015 and start of 2016. My sister had to go the hospital in February. Then just a week after we got Cooper, my mom fell hard during tennis practice and broke her arm. She had to get surgery and she couldn’t drive, cook, or play tennis for a little over a month. Then, my brother cracked his head open and although I would have liked to be left out of the health problems hitting the family, I began having problems with my tonsils. It was hard for me to eat and concentrate due to the throbbing in my throat. I went to the doctor and I learned I had a sinus infection. The doctor prescribed amoxicillin, a medicine I had taken many times before due to many high likelihood to get strep throat and sinus infections. However, the Family Curse of 2016 struck and I had an allergic reaction! My lips swelled up to the size of a fish and I had trouble breathing. They year continues to be a disaster for our family. Next, my brother tore his PCL playing football, and he had to go to physical therapy for months. The doctor said if it had even tore a hair more it would have caused everything in his knee to tear, and he would have had to get surgery. Worst of all, my grandmother sadly passed away. My grandfather then moved in with us. Although, we loved getting able to spend time with him and see him every day rather than 1-2 times a year, it was an extremely stressful transition.  And on top of it all another one of my best friends had to go the hospital for a couple of weeks because her medicine was making her blood pressure way too low. 2016 was not an easy year for me and my family at all, but there was one shining light through it all, my dog Cooper Bubba. He never failed to make me happy after a long day, and he was always there to make me smile and laugh. I could go on a walk with him, play tug-of-war, or even just rub his stomach and he would make my day better. When I was younger my sister had a tiny little orange cat with fur as bright as my sister’s hair. He loved to play outside and catch squirrels and one day he went outside and he never came back again. We later found out that he had been eaten by a coyote. The only thing that made me feel better was my dog Holly. She had some kind of dog sense, and she knew I was hurting. She would comfort me, and brighten my mood. Cooper, as only a puppy of a couple of months, was able to do the same exact thing.

Believe it or not my dog has helped me learn vital lessons you need in life. He has taught me to be patient and not get mad when he digs in the yard. He has taught me to be kind even when I am angry. Finally, he has taught me that you never know how just being there for someone else can brighten their mood, and that the little things actually make a big difference in other people’s lives. I am so thankful for my light of 2016 because with all the disasters that faced my family, I couldn’t have done it without him.