Through Rex’s Eyes

Dad was off to work, the SUV was packed, mom took me for one more potty walk before we left for grandma’s house. We went back in the house for mom to get my dog dishes and my container of water for the trip. We were about to walk out the door when mom turned around to look back inside the apartment. She had said we would be gone for a few weeks however when she stood in the doorway looking around it was like she was looking around for the last time. She took a deep breath and when she let it out it was like she was disconnecting from the sadness in her life there. I knew she didn’t understand what was happening, I didn’t completely understand it even though I could see some things had already begun to change in her. Mom had packed so many things to take with us there was barely room for me to lay down on the seat behind her. The seats were always kept folded down and mom would put a thick soft blanket on top of the one left for me. This time I had only one section of the seat to lay on. I don’t remember how I managed to turn myself around to lie down in such a small place however I was going with mom no matter what, so I made sure I would fit in the smallest space and not complain. It was going to be an adventure, just mom and me, the kind of trips I really enjoyed. Mom hadn’t said much to me about our trip, other than we would see grandma before going to the house in North Carolina. I wasn’t sure why she had been so quiet about our plans. She would normally tell me what we were going to do in detail before we would go anywhere other than when we went on our normal walks. Mom had been really quiet lately and seemed to always be thinking about things I didn’t understand. Once we got on the road she began to relax, she was still quieter than normal. We stopped often for me to stretch my legs and for us both to have a potty break. Mom knew I liked to potty in tall grass or weeds so she would take me to the edge of the rest areas so I could find just the right spot. Sometimes it would take a few minutes before I found that right place, mom never seemed to mind me taking my time. After each stop mom seemed more relaxed, like she was peeling away another layer of stress. There were many layers so I knew it would take longer than our trip for her to really relax.