Junior Gets A Pet

CHAPTER ONE
Junior Gets a Pet

   Of all the memorable times in my life, the most memorable was when my son Junior was growing up. Junior was already into his forth year of life and asking questions as well as making comments about everything. I had a small problem understanding him sometimes, because Junior talked with a slur in his speech, and also left out “S’s” in a few words. For instance he might say, “Outta me way ya ’tupid mutt !” when he saw a dog on the sidewalk where he was walking.
   One day I noticed Junior just sitting around outside with his head in his hands. I  called  to  him,  “Junior,  would  you  come here?”
   He came moping into the house and in his usual way he asked, 
“What you wants Mom?”
   I said, “Junior, how would you like to have a pet?” 
   He answered, “Ya means it Mom, can me has me vewwy own pet? That way me can took care of him, and pet him, and watches him wags him wittle tail.”
   I said, “It sounds like you are wanting a dog.”
  Junior replied, “Yep, that what me wants, a wittle doggie, so me will has sumpin’ to pway wiv that me can calls me vewwy own.”
  So I told Junior to get cleaned up and we would go to the pet shop.
  “Yippee,” he yelled, “we’s goin’ to the pet ’tore, me will has a doggie.”
   While Junior was getting ready, I phoned my mother and told her that I was going to get Junior a dog for a pet. 
   “The poor thing !” she exclaimed.
   I  said,  “No  Mother,  Junior  really  wants  a  dog.”
   She said, “I wasn’t talking about Junior, I meant the poor dog.”
   I said, “Oh come now Mother, he’s not going to mistreat his pet surely .”
   Then Mother calmly said, “Oh yeah, remember what he did to the cat he found wandering in my back yard last week ? I thought the little thing was going to have a heart attack when Junior came screeching through the hedge bushes on his tricycle.”
   I said, “Well, maybe he didn’t know the cat was that close to the hedges.”
  “Oh yes he did, trust me, he knew.” said Mother. I told her to meet us at the pet shop any way, then hung up the phone. My mother got carried away sometimes when it came to Junior, but he could get on her nerves.
  By this time Junior had gotten ready to go; he came running up to me and asked, “How me looks? Me bets me could win a beauty contest by the 
way me looks. What do me smells like? Me put on some of you peefoom.”
  He didn’t have to tell me that, because I knew it when he 
came out of his room.
   I said, “That smells really nice, but boys don’t wear ladies things like perfume. Come here and I’ll wash that off.”
  “Okay,” he said, “but me wants to smells good for me doggie.”
   I managed to get the perfume off Junior, then we started for the pet shop. When we arrived at the pet shop, my mother was already waiting on us.
   “What  took  you  so  long?”  she  asked.
  “I had a little problem with Junior’s smell.” I answered, “He thought he should smell good for his pet, so he used my perfume.”
 Mother just frowned and looked at Junior. By now, Junior was about to cross the street for the pet shop when he saw that we were not behind him.
  He yelled, “C’mon Mom! We got to git me pet before him dies of old age!”
  “We’re coming, Junior.” I said.
  So Mother and I took Junior by the hands, then crossed the street. We stopped outside the shop and Mother said, “There’s a lot of pets to choose from in there Junior, are you  sure  you  want  a  dog?”
   “Yep, that what me wants, Mimaw, me wants a wittle doggie to pway wiv.” Junior replied firmly. With that we entered the door.
   The  shop  keeper  asked,  “May  I  help  you?”
  And before I could answer, Junior said, “Why? Mom look okay to me. You not sick is you Mom?”
  I said, “No Junior, he means he will help us find a pet.” 
  “Me not need no help to find me pet. Me eyes okay.” said Junior  as  he  began  to  look  around.  I told  Mother  we might  as  well look  around,  too.
   Mother said, “You look, I’m going to keep an eye on Junior, just in case he decides to bite one of these animals.”
   I could hear Junior commenting on the pets as he looked, “Look at the wittle birdies, look at the wittle kitty cats, look at…Mom…Mom…C’mere and look at this! Me not know what this are!”
   I went to see what he had found, and so did Mother. When we reached Junior, he was standing at a cage with a dachshund inside.
   He asked, “What this is Mom?”  
   I said “Why, it’s a dog Junior.”
   “No it not Mom, he too long. If that a doggie, him got his back legs hung, when his front legs still going!” said Junior.
   I asked him, “Would you like to pet him? You may find that you like him.”
   He agreed, so we asked the keeper if we could take him out of the cage so he came over and unlocked the door.
   As he was about to take him out Junior asked, “How you keep him from breaking when you pick him up?” 
   The keeper just laughed and said, “He won’t break son, he’s built tough.”
   He gently took the dog from his cage and set him on the floor. Junior knelt down near the dog and began to pet him. The dog, in turn, raised his head and began licking Junior’s face.
   “Look Mom, he think you not washes me face good, he gonna washes it more!” said Junior.
   Mother just frowned and said, “Don’t let him lick too much, he might wash your face away.”
   “Mom!!” cried Junior “Me face is gone, now me won’t be able to see me doggie! Me can’t sees Mom!”
   “Mother!” I exclaimed, “You should not pick at Junior that way!” Then to Junior I said “It’s alright son, Mimaw was just playing, you can still see, look at me. Don’t you see me?”
   He looked up and said, “Yep, but me no see Mimaw.”   
   “That’s because she’s behind you.” I told him.
   “Oh, there her are.” Junior said as he turned around, then he took Mother’s hand and placed it on his chest, while he said “Feel me heart, it bumpin’ like an in’ian drum. Me thinks me not see no more, and me scared of the dark.”
    Then Mother, who had been laughing the entire time, told Junior “I’m sorry Junior, but I didn’t say the dog had washed your face off, I said he might do it.”
   “Me  not  hear  no  might  Mimaw,  me  just  hear  you  say ‘face off’ and me thinks me no see.” Junior said looking back down at the dog.
    The shop keeper, now brushing tears from his eyes from laughing so much, said “Son, how about me giving you a collar for your dog, just because I like you.”
    Then Junior looked at me and said, “You gonna buys me doggie, Mom, he say him give me a collar for me doggie.” 
    I told Junior yes, then the shop keeper took the dog, put the collar on, and handed him to Junior.
    I paid for the dog and told the shop keeper thanks as we started out the door. Junior, who had not waited for Mother and me, was already in the car yelling for us. I asked Mother over for dinner so she and I could talk. 
   Mother, now approaching her car said, “I’ll just follow you home, I would like to see what Junior has planned for his dog.”
   “I’ll meet you there.” I said.
   When  we  turned  into  the  driveway  Junior  began  to yell, “Lemme out Mom! Me and Marbles got ’tuff to do!”  
   I said “Hold on young man, wait until I stop the car, and by the way, why did you call your dog Marbles?” 
   Junior said,  “ ’cause he has wittle yeller marbles over him eyes.”
   True to Junior’s word, the dog did have yellow or tan spots over his eyes. The dachshund was a black and tan with short legs and long ears, but still in his puppy stage. I  stopped  the  car  and  Junior,  carrying  his pet,  went running  around  to  the  back  of  the  house.  I  got  out  as Mother stopped her car and told her to come on in. We both went into the house, and Mother and I went to the kitchen so I could make some tea.
   “Mother would you catch some water in the kettle, while I get the tea?” I asked.
    Mother got some water in the kettle and set it on the stove eye to boil. She stopped long enough to look out the kitchen window at Junior and his new pet. I went to the back door to look also. Junior had his coaster  wagon taking it toward the side walk. Marbles was trotting along beside him, wagging his tail and glancing up at Junior as if to say “What are you doing?”
I didn’t think much about the matter, so I returned to making our tea. Mother continued to watch Junior, occasionally laughing a little. When she saw Junior start for the house, Mother quickly went to the table and sat down.
   Junior came in and said, “Mom, where me cowboy hat? Me pwaying like me on the Owegon Twail.”
   I told him to look in the closet, still thinking nothing of his activities.
   A few moments later, Junior came storming through the house and yelling “Yippee, me goin’ to Owegon, me hope me sees some in’ians, me just hope them not give me hair cut.”
   I laughed a little, thinking of the wonders of being a child, and the imagination that made being a child so special.
   As Junior slammed the screen door behind him, Mother exclaimed the very thoughts I was thinking, “Oh to be a child again, that boy has an imagination that won’t quit.”
   “You are so right, sometimes I think he goes to bed and dreams of what wild things he’s going to do next.” I said while bringing Mother some tea.
   “Where do you think Junior will want his dog to sleep tonight?” Mother asked as she sipped her tea.
   I said, “If I know Junior, he’s going to have Marbles by his bed where he can step on him when he goes to the bathroom.”
   Suddenly we heard a yell in the back yard, “Yippee, me got me wagon all set to go to Owegon. Giddy-up horsy, me want to git there before me bed time. C’mon horsy, what the matter, you not know the way?” Junior was saying, “Me thinks Mom has a woad map me can git.”
   When I saw what was happening, I couldn’t help laughing. Junior had Marbles at the front of his wagon with two strings tied from his collar to the handle, and two strings from the collar to Junior’s hands for use as reins.
   Mother was behind me and saw this sight, and between laughs she said “What happened to your horse Junior? Did he eat too many low fat oats, or did he shrink in the sun?”
    “Vewwy funny.” Junior came back at her, “Me needs to git to Owegon an’ me family all comics. Mom, does you had a woad map?”
    I said “Junior you shouldn’t have your dog tied like that.”
   Junior asked “Why, you know a better way to tie him?” 
   I said “No Junior, I mean you shouldn’t use your dog as a horse.”
   “Why? Me pwetendin’ to be Davy Cwocket. Why can’t Marbles pwetend like he horsy?” asked Junior.
   But when I persisted, Junior finally got the message, and when I told him I didn’t have a map either, he just said “Oh well, me don’t has a horsy no how, now me never git to Owegon.”
   I told him not to worry about Oregon, and that he should think of teaching Marbles some tricks.
   “You  means  him  can  does  magic?”  Junior  asked.
   “No Junior, I mean you can teach him how to sit up, roll over or play dead.” I said.
   “Oh you means like them does on T.V. ? Boy me will has a smart doggie, him will know how to does a lot.” Junior said, “Him will be as good as Win Tin Tin, or Ol’ Yeller, yippee me will has a smart doggie!” 
   Junior took Marbles tie lines off, then took his wagon back where he kept his outside toys, and put away his cowboy hat. Mother and I had gone back inside and were finishing our tea.
   On his way back out I stopped Junior and said “Why don’t you start teaching Marbles something simple, like fetching a stick when you throw it?”
   Junior thought that was a good idea, and went outside with Marbles.
   “Now that Junior is occupied for a while, I’ll start dinner.” I told Mother.
   “He may be outside now, but I’ll bet he comes running when he smells food.” Mother said as she set the table.
   “Yeah, Junior may be small, but there’s nothing wrong with his appetite.” I said jokingly.  
   While I prepared dinner, Mother and I could hear Junior outside with Marbles. Then I heard him say something that made me wonder what was going on.
   “Since me has to teach you how to git me stick when me frowes it, me will shows you.” said Junior. Then he threw the stick and got down on his 
hands and knees, and went to fetch it. The sight was so comical, I couldn’t help laughing.
   Mother said “What’s so funny?” Then she came to the door beside me, and looked on the back lawn. There came Junior back towards Marbles, with the stick in his mouth, then he dropped it beside Marbles and said “Now you sees, it not so hard, all you has to do is git the stick when me frowes it.”
   Mother said “Well Julia, I think I’ve seen it all. The dog is so smart, he has Junior chasing after the stick.”
   Mother and I looked at each other both of us still laughing at what we had just seen, then we both called to Junior at the same time, “Junior” we yelled, “it’s dinner time!”
   And almost forgetting Marbles, Junior came running and yelling loud enough for all our neighbors to hear, “Yippee,  me  is  hungry  enough  to  eat  two  Marbles!”

Reviews

[Jenny Leigh]

I love this story. I am not usually a kids story person, but I can see how you added the effect of speaking in a child's tone in this. Love it. Keep up the good work.