300. A Dog Named Dolly Parton

A listener shares the story of the day she met a special dog, Dolly Parton.

Transcripts may not appear in their final version and are subject to change.

Nora: I’m Nora McInerny and it’s going to be okay. This show is a group project where our team and you, our listeners, share a little thing, an okay thing, something that makes us feel happy ish, even when everything else feels kind of terrible.

Caller:  The Friday before spring break was a work day at my school, so I didn’t have any students. I was going out to get something out of my principal’s car for her as a way of being helpful and also procrastinating. I went to her car in the cold drizzle, grabbed what she needed, and turned around to head back inside.

I crossed the small parking lot, was a tiny white dog who looked like my dog Gizmo that I’d had for 14 years but lost at the end of 2019 to age related health issues. We stared at each other and I thought I was just seeing something I wanted to see because the dog stood motionless and silent. Then she barked with a little hop on her front legs.

I followed her but she was scared and would not let me get too close. I turned and went inside to give my principal her items and let her know I would be outside catching a dog for the foreseeable future. I spent the next hour and a half in the cold March drizzle, slowly gaining the trust of this pup after trapping her in an enclosed space with me.

With help from two colleagues, we got her in a plastic storage tote, wrapped her in warm towels, and brought her in the building. When we got to my classroom, I removed the towels and evaluated the matting and debris stuck to this tiny wet puppy. She held still as I trimmed away the sheet of matting with my best scissors and gave her a warm bath in my classroom sink.

Her personality began to show as she became more comfortable and learned she was in a safe place. Over the next five hours, she alternated between laying at my feet and exploring the classroom while I finished entering grades and updating progress reports. During this time, efforts were made to find her owner, but it was apparent that that role would be taken on by a different individual moving forward.

When the day came to an end, I took her to PetSmart to get the essential items, then took her home to slowly introduce her to my other dog, who had been with me for the last four years. I was worried my other dog would feel betrayed or possessive of the home that had been only hers. But this worry was unnecessary.

Like so many are, they adapted to each other slowly while establishing boundaries, and were soon chasing each other around the coffee table and curling up together for naps. Neither dog, the new Dolly Parton. and Old Faithful Mavis Beacon came from warm, loving backgrounds, but they have been able to find that in our home together.

It serves as a gentle reminder that we are all just walking each other home, and it’s going to be okay.