In this story, the saying, “A dog is a man’s best friend” has a meaning beyond what words could ever express. Regardless, I’m going to tell you a true story about how one dog saved the lives of two Marines and did what no human being was capable of doing.
Let’s begin.
I don’t want to get into my past much but let’s just say I had a lot of problems coping with past military experiences. If I could use one picture to describe my situation, this is it.
I always felt I was living on borrowed time and it was only a matter of time before the demons inside me took complete control. The booze, the partying, the women… nothing was helping me unsee the horrors of war and the atrocities that humans being were capable of committing against each other.
The Day I Found a Little Peace
I was referred by my shrink to a Master Dog Trainer who specializes in PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) dogs. I was very reluctant at first, being that I could barely take care of myself, to take on the responsibility of caring for a dog that required my undivided attention at all times.
Needless to say, my heart immediately felt something very strong for the cutest puppy in the world! I introduce you to Libby (short for Liberty).
What can I say about Libby. She saved my life. After a year of training, she was a PTSD Dog that loved to work. She lived for me. She was always by my side and shadowed me everywhere I went. She became my friend. She became the one I could depend on. The one who would do anything to keep me happy.
The Day Libby Saved My Life
Even until this day, it’s sometimes difficult to get up and start the day. There are times when I lose my battle with demons. My mind won’t stop playing the fucking horror movies in my head. That shit is on constant replay and everything is in virtual reality. I wish I could make it stop. The mind can become a fucked up place.
This one particular day, I finally had enough. I couldn’t take the pain anymore. I gave up. Death was waiting for me and she was ready to collect. I grabbed my Glock 22 and put it to my head. Before I tell you what happens next, I have to reveal something to you. I’ve shot that weapon hundreds of times. I can’t tell you how many hours and hours of dry fire and live fire time I had with this particular gun.
I put the gun to my head and pulled the trigger. To my surprise, I was still alive. The gun never fired. The pin hit the primer but it didn’t go off. I couldn’t believe I did it. I pulled the fucking trigger and I should be dead. But yet, here I am, feeling even more like a fucking failure because I can’t even kill myself correctly.
Then, I fell to my knees. I started crying hysterically. I don’t know if it was the adrenaline of what I just did, along with the feeling of stupidity, selfishness and about a hundred other feelings all running through my mind and body all at once. I was in disbelief. I failed at fucking life. It’s my worst decision until this day.
Libby Takes Action
Until this day, I still don’t believe what Libby did. As I dropped to my knees trying to understand what I just attempted to do, I dropped my gun next to me. I was crying while on my knees and then I fell forward with my head to the ground.
Libby came over, laid down on the gun and began to whimper and lick the tears off my cheek. She stayed on my gun and began to comfort me in such a way that it felt like she was telling me it was going to be ok. She kept whimpering and nudging me with her wet nose making attempts for me to raise my head up to look at her and pet her. She loved me. I still believe that was her way of saying, “I love you”.
I’ll never forget that day. I’ve never spoken of it. I guess deep down inside, I’ve always wanted to thank Libby for helping me understand that her love was unconditional and that she was always there for me. Thank you ol’ gal. Thank you for being there for me and thank you for not letting try one more time.
This is not the end of the story. But for now… I’m done. You see, I’m still having problems writing the next part of the story and write about what happened to Libby.
I’ll continue my “Part 2: How One Dog Saved Two Human Beings” story in a couple of days.
My heart still hurts and I can only bare one Libby story at a time.
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Other Sites Authored:
Yourbesthustle.com
UnitedVoice.com
ModernSurvival.org
Critraining.com
EmergencyCase.com
ArmingPatriots.com
https://medium.com/@henrymarin
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