Darla's Back

I see that Darla is back at the Clip Joint.  And that’s good.

That’s real good.

Now, I have no idea who Darla is or where she’s been, but I can imagine that little thrill she gets when she sees her name on the marquee outside the Joint: Darla’s Back!  For a few weeks, I’d wager, people will talk:  “Oh! She’s back! Darla is back!”

“Oh, I love the way she does my tints.”

“She’s just terrific, isn’t she?”

And then, upon seeing Darla again, “Where’ve you been?”

“You look great.  You lose weight?”

And eventually, the marquee will be changed: Back to school special: Free bang trim; Darla’s scissors will grow dull; and everyone will forget that Darla’s back, let alone the fact that she’d gone somewhere in the first place. 

But that’s OK. 

It’s the ordinariness of life that makes marquee moments special.

* * *

I’m sad to report that Destructo—the service dog that Squints was raising—has been pulled from the program.  It’s not an uncommon thing to happen, but that doesn’t mean we don’t feel a bit disappointed and perhaps a tinge embarrassed by the whole thing: Leave it to us to have a dog that fails the program.

And I have to stay, it’s strange, going places without him.  No library.  No bank.  No book store.  Not even Starbucks.  We were used to our little bit of fame that having Destructo brought us.  Some people scolded us for bringing him into the library; Others told us stories of the service dogs they raised; They congratulated Squints for his dedication while his sisters and I roll our eyes at each other, knowing that Squints’ dedication had waned as Destructo went from eight pounds to fifty.

Every week, the bank tellers would offer him a biscuit.  The librarians would exclaim over the size of his paws while they scanned books.  Mothers would bring their children over to pet Destructo and ask questions.

When we initially stopped taking Destructo around, there were questions: “Where’s the dog today?” 

Or…

“How come you didn’t bring Destructo?”

But eventually, the questions diminished and then faded and then stopped altogether. 

That’s all over now.  We’re back to being regular people.

We’re back to being ordinary people and Destructo is now an ordinary dog. 

He’s nothing special.

Except he’s ours.