Whatever life threw at us each year, come Christmas our family had one constant tradition: our dog Pepper opened our presents for us. Watching our sweet dog unwrap gifts always warmed the holiday, which was often a little bittersweet because college, studying abroad, or work commitments often kept my two sisters and me away.
One year, everyone made it home for a Christmas together. I visited from college, Kaci flew in from Arizona, and Kara was back from Ireland. Mom’s jubilance kept her busy baking cookies for us all. Our Christmas season should have been perfect.
It couldn’t feel perfect, though, because Pepper’s health was deteriorating. Her life had already been longer than we expected —she was fourteen —and yet her mind was still sharp. Her enthusiasm for life made us feel better. But her body could not keep up with her spirit. She’d already shown the usual signs of deafness and stiffness. That year, her hips and back legs started giving out on her. We knew we would soon have to make a difficult decision.
It was likely Pepper’s last Christmas, so we decided to make sure she enjoyed it. On Christmas Eve, we gathered around the tree to open an early present. We each took a turn and then called Pepper to open one more. But her tangled legs could not navigate the boxes and shredded wrapping paper on the floor. She stumbled over the obstacles, and soon she disappeared into the next room. She crumpled back to the floor, as out of the way as she could get.
We were heartbroken. Could Pepper even participate in her last Christmas? Pepper stayed on the periphery of all our holiday activities. Throughout the day, we gave gifts but did not feel very giving. We shared stories over cinnamon rolls that tasted bland. We played games by the tree whose twinkles had dimmed.
That evening, Kaci said what we’d all been thinking: “I wish Pepper could have helped open presents this year.” We all put down our mugs of spiced tea. “Maybe she still could,” Kara said. “But there’s none left,” Mom reminded her. Kara jumped up and left the room. We heard her opening drawers and cabinets in the kitchen.
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Kara returned with a box of dog biscuits, scissors, a pile of color paper, and a roll of tape.
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Soon, Pepper selected her first Christmas gift.
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