Tanti Auguri Bruco!

Bruco turned 4 years old today. That means he’s 28 in dog years! We surprised him with a T-bone steak dinner to celebrate and I gave him the best gift of all by calling him by his name. I really called him “Coco”, but that’s close enough! There is of course a story of how Bruco became a Balent and of course I’m going to tell you about it… When something terrible happens in life, my Mom says to wait a year later and then take a step back from the situation and find the good that came out of it. It never fails; she can always find something good as a result. Bruco is the “good”. Three years ago, my parents lost a dog here in Sicily. I don’t mean “lost” as in the euphemism for death; I mean literally “lost” a dog. While my parents were in London for a weekend, their Italian Greyhound Remi ran away from the person who was watching her. My parents searched day and night, hung thousands of flyers, placed ads in newspapers and on television but days turned into months and months turned into years and Remi never came home. Not knowing the fate of Remi was devastating to my parents. My Mom took it especially hard and swore her heart would never recover.

About a year after Remi’s disappearance, my parents got an email from a woman who saw the missing dog picture in the newspaper. The woman said she had an Italian Greyhound that looked similar to Remi except it was a boy. She could no longer care for the dog and wanted my parents to take him. Bruco did look a lot like Remi but he was nothing like Remi. Remi was timid and Bruco was aggressive. He snapped at people, he barked insistently, and he growled often. My parents had their reservations, but adopted Bruco because they felt that he needed them just as much as they needed him. With lots of love, patience and training, my parents broke that tough exterior and found a loyal friend and a great little snuggler. Bruco could never replace Remi but his love has helped my parents' hearts heal. Happy Birthday Bruco! Thank you for finding us. You are our “good”.