Animals

Mango gave me a look that I think I could remember for my whole life It was a drizzly, rainy day. There were hardly any people walking on the street. My sister was in her room, singing a pre-school song. My mom huddled in her bed, reading a book. My cat Baboo was, of course, sleeping. My dad was on the couch, doing something with his iPad. And I was on the dining room chair, feeling bored. I wondered where my other fat cat Mango was. I looked everywhere. On the table, the couch, and finally, in the closet. And there she was. Slowly blinking at me innocently. I crawled into the closet. I squished and pulled away all the old pillows. I settled in the blankets. As I scratched her under the chin she began to purr. It made me feel warm and sweet, even though the day was cold and wet. Mango seemed very happy, as if it was her who led me into the closet. For a second our eyes locked. For a second Mango seemed more than an overweight cat. For a second Mango gave me a look that I think I could remember for my whole life. But then Mango looked away. And the spell was broken. It was like a baseball shattering glass. After that I left. It was still a drizzly, rainy day. There were hardly any people walking on the street. My sister was tucked away in her room, singing pre-school songs. My mom was huddled in her bed, reading a book. My cat Baboo was, of course, sleeping. My dad was on the couch, doing something with his iPad. And I was on the dining room chair, not feeling bored, but feeling happy. Isabella Widrow, 9Olympia, Washington Claire Nilsson, 12Greenville, South Carolina

“Is this your dog, kid?” a tall policeman asked There’s a funny thing about love. Love can twist you and tie you in a knot. Love can make your heart burst and your eyes fill with tears, and love can make you so jubilant even when there’s a tornado outside. Love can bring you together and tear you apart. Love did all of these to me when my dog Breeze came along. I loved Breeze. He was my dog and we were inseparable. Now he is an image in my brain and an echo in my heart. Back then we lived in the Crestfall Mountains. In winter, the tall mountains would be filled with white snow tops. The lakes would be covered in ice and the snow would fall lightly and gracefully, creating a winter wonderland. In summer, the waterfalls would release all their water, rushing down the stream and into the Garmelen River which flowed through my backyard. Crestfall Mountains was a beautiful place to live. It was a cheerful November day when I first asked my parents about having a dog. I was eleven years old and in my life, all around me my friends had dogs to play with and take care of. They had dogs that could do tricks, dogs that could play catch, and dogs that could protect them. My friend Samuel even had a police dog because his father was a canine officer. “Father?” I had asked. “Can I have a dog?” My father was a big man. He had short stubbles growing along the bottom of his mouth and his eyes were always cheerful and sparkling or dark and serious. Whenever he was happy, the whole world would be happy and the flowers outside would smile. Whenever he was angry, the birds would fly away, and the window panes seemed to shake thunderously. My father pursed his lips. He obviously didn’t expect me to ask this question. To my surprise, he smiled and softly said, “Jay, if you think you’re ready for a dog, you may have one.” That day I was happier than ever before. My mother and father took me to a local shelter where I could pick a dog. There were several dogs and at first I had a hard time choosing. There was a dog with a spot over his left eye, a dog with fluffy ears, and many other dogs each better looking than the next. Finally, I spotted an Alaskan Husky in the back. He had sparkling gray eyes, fluffy brown fur, and when I saw him I knew he was perfect. I easily picked him. The next thing we had to do was name him. My mother, father, and I thought of names in the car ride back home. “Ruffee!” “Cody!” “Nelson!” “Brownie!” “Skye!” Nothing was perfect enough for my beautiful new dog. I sighed and looked out the window. The wind was blowing lightly. A soft breeze drifted lightly all around the mountains. The breeze made the mountain air feel wonderful. Finally, I knew what I was going to name my dog. I jolted upright in my seat. “His name is Breeze,” I said. My mother and father sighed happily. “It’s perfect, Jay!” my mother exclaimed. Breeze and I became best friends fast. Every day while I was sleeping, Breeze would curl up in his dog bed and fall asleep. While I ate breakfast, Breeze ate breakfast. There were other things I learned about Breeze, besides being just like me. One day during my winter break Breeze and I went figure skating on Caramel Lake. The light shiny ice sparkled and every child that lived in our town was skating. I tied Breeze up against a bike rack and leaned down by his face. “I’ll be right back, boy. Please stay here and be a good dog.” Breeze’s ears twitched. I smiled and went off with some of my friends. It was twenty minutes later when I heard a loud, vociferous bark. My heart leaped. Was it Breeze that I heard? The bark became louder and louder. People stopped skating. Suddenly I was aware of a big splotch of water in the ice. The lake was melting! In the splotch of water was Breeze! I couldn’t believe my eyes. Breeze seemed to be gnawing on something. With a lift of his head Breeze pulled out a little boy. Everyone rushed over to Breeze and little Jonny Tompson, who was soaking wet. He was the boy that Breeze had saved. “I-I fell in-t-to the wa-te-r. The doggie sa-aved me.” Breeze stood confidently on the ice. Policemen in puffy uniforms rushed over to us. “Is this your dog, kid?” a tall policeman asked. “Yes,” I said quickly. “Well, son. Your dog just saved that little boy’s life.” I was shocked. “But I tied my dog Breeze to that pole. How did he get out?” The policeman shrugged. “He must have gnawed his way through the tether and pulled on the scarf of the little boy. Funny none of you people saw the boy. Your dog is so observant.” I beamed. The cold day suddenly seemed warm and bright. People and family members of Jonny Tompson thanked me and came over to pat Breeze’s body or rustle his fur. Breeze was always amazing at helping people. His watchful eyes saw things that even watchmen on the mountains couldn’t spot. Often, I would take a walk around our small town in the mountains with Breeze next to me. Every time Breeze would spot something going on. He spotted a crook stealing apples from Old Fisher Trechtin’s store. He spotted children falling off trees. Every place that Breeze had helped in some way, we were both given lots of thanks. Soon enough, we got calls from lots of people who had heard about Breeze. They said they would pay lots of money to have Breeze come and solve their problems. One day in the deep path of winter, the