Like
most days, Melissa discussed the details of various teachers and students where
she worked. RB rarely met any of her
students but knew the staff at the school.
RB remembered the previous year in mid-December RB had the day off. Melissa forgot her phone at home and called
from a school phone to ask RB to bring it to her. Perhaps due to too many Christmas candies or the
proximity of the Christmas holiday, the children in her first grade class were rowdy. When RB walked in the room, the children
stopped their antics and stared at the stranger who entered. Melissa asked the class with a hint of
mystery in her voice, “Class, do you know who this man is?”
The
children replied, “No.”
“This
man knows Santa Claus.”
A
boy said, “Whoa!” There was murmuring in
the room. RB picked up on the ruse and
played along saying, “You weren’t supposed to tell anyone that.”
“Oh
yeah, I forgot. I’m sorry. Class, please don’t tell anyone this man
knows Santa Claus.”
The
children were wide eyed. Several gaped
at him not believing it was true but why would Mrs. Baxter lie to them? RB addressed the class again, “Kids, please don’t’
tell anyone about me. It would make Santa
very happy to know Mrs. Baxter has good kids in her class.”
Then
he turned to his wife and handed her her phone.
“Here you go Mrs. Baxter. I hope
this comes in handy.”
The
night continued like all the others. His
kids had homework to get done. RB, due
to his job writing letters, was always the one who helped with writing. Melissa was the mathematics guru. Both did well enough in the other subjects to
get by. However, their oldest daughter,
Beth, was in her second year of Latin. RB
did one year of Spanish in high school and it didn’t help much. RB and Melissa told her she was on her own
and to get a tutor if she needed help.
The
family had recently brought home a dog from an animal shelter. They named her Bailey. This dog was for their youngest daughter,
Ashley. She was an animal lover and
wanted a dog her whole life. Finally, as
a nine year old, her wish came true.
Bailey
was about three years old and, apparently, had some training. She knew to go outside to do her business and
would sit, shake and lay down on command.
RB liked dogs but never owned a dog before. He had been bitten by two different dogs as a
child. Consequently, he was nervous
around canines.
He
remembered advice from his father about dogs.
He said to never let them think they can get away with anything. Make sure they know who is in charge. Therefore, RB established his alpha status as
soon as the dog entered the household.
Everyone wanted Bailey to sleep with them but RB refused to let the dog
on any furniture. Since the kids invited
her onto the couch or their beds, Bailey soon learned to jump down from
furniture when he approached.
Melissa
was a big offender of this rule. She
regularly called the dog onto the bed.
On this night when RB exited the bathroom, ready to get into bed, the
dog was on his side of the bed. Her eyes
registered acknowledgement of her offense.
The end of her tail flipped to and fro in an attempt to soften RB’s
heart.
“Who
said you could be on the bed?” RB asked.
Bailey
rolled onto her back in submission, tail still moving back and forth. She was working her way into his heart. Still, he told her to get down and she
instantly obeyed. She is a good
dog.
The
next morning, after his typical two bowls of cereal, RB made his lunch and
headed to work. RB never thought about
what the day would bring. He simply
listened to the news headlines. He learned
what was going on in his world. Besides,
he knew the stories at work were all basically the same. Only the names, dates, and airports changed.
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