ALONE IN THE WOODS
As Wow Bow lay sleeping in the drafty old barn at the edge of the forest, his mother thought about their wonderful life together and the horrible thing she had to do.
It was the beginning of another cold Canadian winter, and once again, she would be competing with younger, tougher dogs for scraps of food in garbage cans and whatever else she could find.
Her difficult choice was based on months of trying to decide what was best for them. The answer made her sick to her stomach and went against her every instinct. The truth is, she was no good for Wow Bow. She had gotten too old and weak to fight and take care of him. The worst thing about it was she knew Wow Bow was the best thing that had ever happened to her.
She loved his sweet nature, curly bushy tail, and big brown circle around one eye. She loved the white paws already as big as hers, the droopy left ear, and the thick furry coat of white and brown that would keep him warm no matter how cold it got. But she also knew that if she didn't leave him now, neither would survive the numbing cold and icy winter winds.
"Time to get up, Wow Bow," said his mother, "Rise and shine!"
Wow Bow looked up at her, then rolled over on his side, trying to shake off the drowsiness of a good night's sleep. As he lay there, his mother thought about how cruel other dogs had always been to him.
'Wow Bow! Wow Bow!" he'd bark. And those mean dogs would laugh and make fun of him. It wasn't his fault he barked backwards.
"Hey, Wow Bow," a dog once taunted, "does your mother have a freaky bark like yours?"
"I bet she's got a tail for a nose," said another dog, "or one big eye in the middle of her forehead."
They didn't care if their hurtful remarks made Wow Bow whimper in sadness and hang his head.
"Wake up, my little sleepy head," Wow Bow's mother said, knowing their time together was running out.
Wow Bow stretched, yawned, and, putting one big floppy foot after the other, walked over to his mother and licked her face good morning. Wow Bow, who looked like his mother, was a mixture of many breeds. Part German Shepherd, part Sheepdog, part Saint Bernard, and a few other breeds you could only guess at.
From the time he was a puppy, awful dogs had picked on Wow Bow. Once, ten of them surrounded him and tried to start a fight by calling him a mean name.
"You ain't nothin' but a dirty mongrel," they shouted. Then they chanted in a teasing singsong way: "MONGREL, MONGREL . . . WOW BOW IS A MONGREL!" They sang this over and over until Wow Bow finally ran away.
"Mama, what's a mongrel?" said Wow Bow.
"It's just a mix of different dogs," said his mother.
"It's an ugly word," said Wow Bow. "It makes me feel small. Like I'm not as good as other dogs."
"That's not true, Wow Bow. Being different is not a bad thing. Remember what I always told you - having a unique bark makes you stronger and better than those mean dogs. Now, my beautiful boy, let's start our day.
"Today, we're going for a long walk in the woods," said his mother. "Tomorrow, you'll be a year old, and it's time you knew how to take care of yourself. You have a lot to learn today. Like where to find shelter in bad weather. The safest places to sleep at night. The way to avoid plants that make you itchy. What kind of food is safe to eat. How to tell a friend from an enemy. Which animals are nice, and which ones to stay away from. Chipmunks and raccoons are okay, but skunks and porcupines can be trouble."
In about eight hours, Wow Bow had learned more than he had in his whole lifetime. But with all that learning and so much walking, Wow Bow had gotten very tired. His mother knew he was exhausted. She also knew she had given him all the survival skills she possibly could.
"Take a nap under this big pine tree, sweetheart, and we'll finish our lessons when you wake up," said his mother, fighting back her tears. Wow Bow soon fell into a deep sleep and never heard his mother's final words.
"I hope someday you'll forgive me. I will think about you always and love you forever. Goodbye, Wow Bow. Goodbye, my darling dog."
Hours later, when Wow Bow woke up, he sat right where he was, just like his mother told him to if she should ever wander off for a few minutes in search of food or shelter.
But after a while, when Wow Bow could stand it no longer, he looked everywhere for her. He looked up hills, down hills, behind trees, near the waterfall, under the blueberry bushes, down in the swamp, on top of the cliff. But his mother was nowhere to be found.
Where's Mama? What happened to her? Did she get lost? Is she sick? Is she stuck somewhere? Maybe she's hurt. Or she forgot about me. Or she's mad at something I've done. What if she doesn't come back? What will I do then?
