Story 4: The Breakfast Morning Show

Laika loved my roommate Bradley. He moved into my old house in mid-2016 and into the new place with Laika and I last month. She immediately liked him...I think she sat on his feet the first time that he came over to look at the house. Laika was usually very friendly with new people, especially women, but it took someone special to get that kind of welcome. Bradley was really gentle and affectionate with her; traits which I think she knew from the very first minute. She also must've had some sort of clairvoyant vision, because not only did Bradley let her outside while I was away and spend time with her on the days that I worked two jobs to help pay for her treatments, but his morning routine became Laika's most-anticipated part of the day.

When Bradley first moved in, he used to just eat cereal for breakfast. Although Laika would be interested in whatever anyone was eating, cereal wasn't high on the list of things that got her mouth watering. However, each day, Bradley would make two peanut butter and banana sandwiches to take to work. This was the stuff that Laika's dreams were undoubtedly made of. Two of her favorite foods on Earth were peanut butter AND bananas. To combine them between two pieces of bread was pretty much heaven for her. While Bradley made the sandwiches, Laika would sit several feet away and follow his every move. (Picture a video of a crowd following each shot in a long volley at a tennis match.) She would wag her tail eagerly, as she knew at some point during the making, she would get some of the good stuff. Her patience, focus and gawking would always pay-off, as Bradley would reward her for just being her.

Needless to say, this morning routine replaced my alarm at various points in time. If Bradley was awake, Laika was sure to wake me up. In fact, if I was up earlier than Bradley and had already fed Laika and taken her out, I would meditate or go back to sleep with my bedroom door open so she could be on time to watch the Breakfast Morning Show. Her interest increased a million-fold when Bradley incorporated peanut butter toast into his actual breakfast. At that point, Laika would follow him around the kitchen and dining room, basically sitting at or laying-on his feet as he ate. Followed by the ceremonial making-of-the-sandwiches, Laika would have excitement enough for almost the entire day.

Throughout Laika's early months of chemo treatments, this was her favorite way to start the day. Sadly, around April 2017 she started having massing food-allergy problems and pretty much all non-prescription foods (aside from pumpkin puree) were cut from her diet. I know she was disappointed that she was unable to eat peanut butter, but due to the marked increase in her health from the new diet I didn't want to let her cheat. Still, her morning vigil continued. After about a month or two, banana was on the menu again, so Laika was able to once again enjoy the show interactively!

I knew that Laika's body was failing her, because on her last few days she didn't really care about watching Bradley make his breakfast. It was a huge clue that she gave me to let me know it was time for her to move-on: when something that became her reason for waking up was no longer a source of joy. This morning before I left for work, Bradley and I talked about how it is so hard to come to terms with Laika not lurking somewhere in the house, waiting for the Breakfast Morning Show to begin. Having this shared memory of loss is comforting. After all, it a way to celebrate and remember Laika's life with those who she unconditionally shared her love, appetite and quirkiness with.