New Home

And then — without warning — everything changed….Life does that sometimes.

Ria left for Berlin. Aaryan was moving into his first apartment.
And you and I went somewhere new.

That was the solution. The right one. Even if it hurts. I had always lived in a big house. Full of people. Full of noise. Someone was always around. I was never alone.

And then suddenly, it was just u and me!

San Jose.

A one-bedroom apartment in a community with many buildings, walking trails, parks, offices, and — most importantly — dogs. So many dogs. Everywhere. Big ones. Small ones. Loud ones. Confident ones. And most importantly leash-free at the parks!!!

It was nothing like LA.

When you first brought me to the new place. I didn’t understand. I moved slowly. I stayed in my little cave house and watched.

For two days, I barely came out.

You cried at night when you thought I was asleep. You read articles on your phone about dogs and moving and sadness. You worried I was depressed. I could feel your fear pressing into the quiet and wanted to tell you something.

I wasn’t broken… just adjusting.

Everything I knew had changed. And for the first time, it was just you and me.

Outside, the world was loud. Dogs everywhere. People everywhere. Energy everywhere. I barked from the edges. I stayed back. When you took me to the dog park, I stood near the fence and made my feelings very clear.

Do not rush me.

Dogs ran toward me. I growled. I said, stay away from me. I wasn’t ready.

Eventually — slowly — I allowed it. I never really played. That was never my thing. But I tolerated and observed and accepted.

And then I noticed something familiar-Squirrels….So many squirrels.

Ah yes. Now this place made sense. Our walks became squirrel-focused. Mission-driven. Purposeful. Some things never change.

And little by little, we settled.

You learned about the community and I learned the sounds.
We learned from each other in a new way.

It was harder than before. Quieter. Smaller. But it was ours.

And a new life began…