That night, I’ll never forget it. My father got a page at about 8:30, and, strangely, we were out for a drive. We stopped into HQ, and used the payphone. The whole time my heart was beating a million times a minute. My dad hung up and said that my grandmother had two baby guinea pigs at her house, waiting for me to take them home. We got to my grandmother’s house, there, on the floor of the kitchen, was a cat carrier. You could hear something chewing on a carrot inside. We thanked my grandmother, and left. The whole way home, I thought about all the memories we would make. I brought them home, and set their pet carrier in the middle of the living room floor. I opened the door and patiently waited for the then shy pigs to come out and play. After what seemed like an eternity, a cute little fuzzy head popped out, and then immediately went back in again, another little head popped out then the little brown fuzzball stepped out, and another brown and white one soon followed. At last, I saw what I had been waiting for, if only at that point I would’ve known that those two furry creatures would change my life more drastically than anyone had and, so far, ever will.
Those two pigs were later named Teddy and Patches. Teddy is a Brown Rex guinea Pig, with a pot belly and an attitude problem just like my father. I soon found out that their personalities were the same. The other guinea pig, Patches, was a brown and white rex Guinea Pig with a kind and gentle spirit. The little pig would always behave, and she was very cuddly, she liked to be cuddled, so different from her bother. I found that this little girl was like me in almost every way, gentle, but not afraid to fight.
The days flew by, and soon, we were closer than I had ever been with anyone. They were always there, and I never saw the tragedy that was coming closer, My father sat me down on the night of my 13th birthday and told me that my baby girl had passed away while I was at my mother’s, The pig I would always go to with all my problems, who would always make me feel better, and who would always take naps on the floor with me, the kind and gentle pig who was like me in every way, had left my life forever, I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye. She’s outside by the big pine tree now, the closest she can be to the cage containing her brother without being inside the house. I miss her dearly, but as I have learned, time does heal almost all wounds. I still have that feisty pig named Ted, and I am so grateful to have him. He’s very outgoing, but a word of caution to all those who want to meet him; don’t get on his bad side, don’t make him mad, he’ll either throw a hissy fit, bite you (believe me, I have the scars to prove it) or kick you. But I’ve learned to love his little tantrums, and a good thing has come out of losing Patches, it has brought Ted closer to me, it has taught him to trust me, and I love him for it.
To those who are reading this, and don’t know my pigs or me, you might think I’m crazy. But those two animals were the only People in my life who were always there when I needed them. They would lick my tears off my cheeks and be cute to make me laugh. I no longer see them as pets, but as a part of me. I’m grateful for every day that I have spent with them. They have made a huge impact on my life, and I will never forget them.
