Spring or Fall of 2000, I took Sam to the neighborhood elementary school to play. The school is about 5 blocks from my mom's house and it was where I went to elementary school second through fifth grade. We were there around 4pm after school and a large group of kids around 8 years old were outside participating in after school activities. The play yard is huge, with large playscapes and open grass areas. One area spans about 100 yards and on one side was where the kids were playing kick ball. I took Sam to the other side of the grass area to play.
When I threw the ball, Sam stood there and watched the ball roll away, then turned and looked at the pack of children playing. Sam immediately started running full speed toward the kids. I stood paralyzed watching Sam charging towards the children and thought, 'Oh, no.' I then started running after Sam yelling, "Sam, no! Sam stop! Sam come here! Sam! Sam! Sam!"
I then saw the kids turn their heads in our direction. I can only imagine what they were thinking when they saw this large, black dog barreling towards them. They all scattered, the girls running to the playscape area to climb up high and the boys just running. The kids heard me yelling Sam's name and they themselves started yelling, "Sam, Sam, over here. Sam, over here."
Sam was chasing the boys and each time his name was called from another direction, he would turn and run that way. Imagine if you will, the sounds of children happy, screaming and laughing, and the cause of such fun...a large, beautiful black border collie lab mix with a heart of gold. Sam chased the boys all around, through the playscape area to another small grass area where three girls were sitting on the grass together. Sam was running straight for them. They heard the commotion and turned, and screamed! They got up and ran. This area was small, with a fence on the left and in front of us and the school on the right. I knew if I was going to catch Sam, this was my chance. He turned around before coming to the front fence and started back the way he had come, just out of my reach. I yelled at a boy in Sam's path, "Grab him!" The boy managed to get a hold of Sam, who just pulled the boy along for the run. I caught up to them and tried to put my arms around Sam's chest, when Sam slipped out of our fingers. He ran through the playscape area again and back to the large grassy field where kids still were, with me, the boy who had briefly caught Sam and other children following.
The kids still in the grass area, managed to get a hold of Sam and stop him. When I arrived out breath, Sam was surrounded by kids, all laughing and smiling at Sam and petting him. Sam was loving the attention. He looked from child to child, his head sweeping the span of kids that surrounded him, Sam was so happy. His eyes said, "Oh, yeah. This is the life."
When I got to Sam's side, the children all started talking at once. "Is his name Sam?" "Can I pet him?" "Will he bite?" "He has a lot of hair." "He's soft."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one girl climbing down from the playscape and coming towards Sam. She got near him and asked, "Does he bite?" I told her no, and she slowly brought her hand towards Sam's head and gave him a little pat. The little girl smiled and laughed.
I then saw the children's after school supervisor coming towards us. When she was near, I said something to the effect of, "I'm really sorry about interrupting your after school program." Her only response was, "Time to go inside kids."
The children groaned and gave Sam one last petting saying, "Bye, Sam." They ran off towards the school, a few of them turning to yell bye to Sam again. Sam, turned and watched them go, smiling the whole time.
When it was just Sam and I, I asked him, "Well, did you have fun?" He wagged his tail and kissed my face. We would return many times to play at the school, Mom always having to make sure after school activities were over before we arrived and not because we arrived.
I like to think of Sam now, in heaven, with many children who have lost their lives too soon, chasing them, playing with them, and bathing in their love and laughter.
This is in loving memory of my beloved Sam. He found me September 5th, 1999 (around the age of 4) and went to heaven on April 5th, 2006. I love him with all my heart and miss him dearly. I miss his snoring at night, his hugs and kisses, and I miss our nightly snuggle time. I think it really is possible to die from a broken heart. Memories like this one help me smile through the tears. I hope it made you smile too.