A Companion for the Weekend

We will be dog sitting periodically this summer. Fortunately, our son is excited about it.

Way back when he was at his first preschool, Kai liked the therapy dog that came to school every week. But, otherwise, he did not like being around dogs very much. He was scared of the various dogs that some of his aunts and uncles had. Some were bigger than him, and some barked a lot and were very active.

But as he has grown, Kai stopped being intimated by dogs. And in the past couple of years, he actually started to look forward to being with my sister’s dog, Emi.

His positive attitude opened up the possibility of our hosting dogs.

Kix was to arrive at our house early Saturday morning. The night before, Kai told us that he wanted to be awake when the dog arrived. And at 6:30 the next morning, he eagerly bounded downstairs when Kix arrived.

Kai greeted him enthusiastically. He couldn’t wait to take him for a walk.


We went to the park near our house. Kix had fun sniffing and exploring the new area. Kai enjoyed Kix’s company.

After we got back home from the walk, Kix mostly relaxed the rest of the day. He does not fetch balls and prefers mostly to lie next to someone while receiving tummy rubs. So it wasn’t like Kai was playing with him all day long.

But there is something about just having a dog in the house that lifts everyone’s spirits. Dogs are like babies or small children, so innocent and cute. And I think Kai felt that, even if he couldn’t articulate it.

Whenever it was time to take Kix outside, Kai wanted to come along. I don’t know if he will still be so interested by the end of the summer, but for now, he seems to want to take on the responsibility of helping to take care of the dog.

Kix’s stay with us is very short. His owner will pick him up shortly.

We all loved having him here. And for a boy who spends so much time with his parents on weekends, it was nice having another companion to keep him company.