By Erin J. Walter
Special to the American-Statesman
My kids longed for a dog for years, coming to my husband and me with puppy dog eyes every few months. I bought them dog souvenirs on vacations and let our daughter get a paw print shaved into her hair. We were adamant that a real dog would be too much. We were never home. Ministry kept me busy. I was notoriously not a dog person.
What a difference a pandemic makes.
Suddenly we were always home — the kids in virtual school, Patrick doing tech work, me leading church services over Zoom. By August, we had taught the kids to ride bikes, watched a new garden grow and wilt, and popped holes in not one but two in-demand, inflatable baby pools. We were tired and tense, isolated and in need of some joy.