Tribute to Archie!

The first time I saw Archie, I was 14 years old. Large, dark, frightened eyes looked up at me from a small face, as if to say, 'Where have I come and where is Mommy?'. That was it! I fell in love and never fell out of it. It was the same for Mr. P and Mrs. P and Miss N as well. It was one of those rare times that all four of us agreed.

Slight in figure, we all noticed that Archie had trouble balancing. A few steps and down went Archie. Then there was the first night. Archie was scared of the dark and could not sleep, so N and Archie spent their first night together. This soon became a routine at least for the next month. Archie felt lonely at night and N always had to study at night so they became nocturnal buddies.

Days and then months went by and Archie became one of us. With us no matter what we were doing - eating, drinking, watching TV, playing, cooking, the list was endless. Nothing was done without Archie being the center of all activities. And Archie enjoyed the attention. So much so, we did not realize that Archie had become possessive. No other person was allowed to become part of our group and soon we had to be very selective in who we saw. But when we did realize it, it created a warm, fuzzy feeling that we were considered so important.

Months soon became years and Archie became more attractive. Mr. P often had trouble and had to chase away, unwanted guests who came lusting after Archie. But this was all a part of life and we all enjoyed it. All of us grew up and the bond we all had grew with it. Archie was now a constant without, whom we could not imagine life at all. It was very hard to remember what life was before Archie. Friend, philosopher, confidante, comedienne and companion, Archie played many roles in our life, all of them equally important. Archie was also a shoulder for all of us to cry on when we were under the weather.

Archie also taught us a lot about ourselves. We never knew we had as much patience in our store as when we were with Archie. Another thing that we learnt from Archie was appreciating food. Archie was so enthusiastic about eating that the attitude infected us all. Mrs. P would be making something really tasty and we all knew where Archie was. With her, of course! Nothing pleased Archie any more than eating food that was freshly made.

One by one we all left home and Mr. and Mrs. P were the only ones with Archie. But it did not make any difference. They were the ones Archie relied on the most. A few more years went by and Archie was getting on in years. Activities were soon limited to taking small walks around the house but Archie was content. Soon food took a backseat and that was when we knew the time had come to let go. Though we did not know it would be so soon.

When it happened it hurt but we were all pleased for Archie because this was the way that Archie would have wanted it to be. Independence and self-respect were the two characteristics that had shaped Archie’s life. It was better this way.

So best friend, companion and shrink – Archie will never be forgotten. After 12 long, wonderful and fruitful years, this is Au Revoir but never GoodBye.

For those of you who do not know the characters – Mr. and Mrs. P are my parents, Miss N (who became Mrs. N a few years ago) is my sister and Archie the protagonist of this tribute was my 12 and a half year old Mongrel who passed away on July 15th, 2005.