mi cachorrita

Honduran Labor Day is May 1st, and this year it fell on a Friday, which meant we had one of those rare occasions known as a three-day weekend. My friend Blanca is from a small village called Manzaragua, about 2 hours outside of Tegus and she offered to take Lauren, Heather and I out there to meet her family and have fun in her village. Sadly at the last minute Lauren got pink eye really bad and couldn’t go, so it was just Heather, Blanca and I. As we were driving out there on Friday, I randomly thought to myself “what if I got a puppy while I’m out there this weekend?” Now, I’ve been thinking for a while that when I start working and living downtown next year that I’m going to want a dog who will help to deter any potential robbers I might encounter. But, I didn’t really think anything would come of this random fleeting thought about getting one now. Friday was a good day, we ate good food, relaxed, hiked, took lots of photos, had a bonfire and more. Saturday morning Blanca had planned for us to visit Doña Tila, one of the ladies who lives in the village and who makes homemade bread in a 40-year-old stone oven. We made the 15-minute walk to her house. She welcomed us warmly and we pulled up chairs to observe her as she whipped the bread dough around with her hand. They have electricity in the village, but she would rather mix the dough by hand than “waste” money on using an electric mixer. Her simple little house was bustling with life: 2 of her daughters were handing her the ingredients she needed for the dough, 3 grandsons were running in and out of the house kicking their little plastic soccer balls, 2 cats, a dog and 2 puppies were scouting out the kitchen for crumbs. And that’s when I fell in love. Those 2 puppies were a couple of the most precious little creatures I’ve seen. I couldn’t keep my hands off of them. I was petting and holding them so much, that by the time we had finished the bread-making process Doña Tila had offered to give me one of them. I had to make some phone calls back to Tegus first to get permission from my roommate and my landlords, but finally the deal was sealed and I had my very own 3-month-old puppy!! Sunday, when we got home she got 2 flea baths. Tomorrow Sadie is going to get her shots and very soon she will start potty training! Oh the joys of little pups.