Tag Archives: heartwarming stories

anecdotes, Hessen

A sweet moment on yesterday’s walk…

I took the featured photo a couple of weeks ago, while passing one of the many beautiful gardens in my neighborhood.

It’s finally Friday, which means Bill will be coming home from his latest trip tomorrow. I would have liked to have gone with him to Spain for the past week or so, but it’s probably better that I didn’t. This particular business trip has been very busy for him. He has said that he’s made a few new Spanish military friends, though, which is nice to hear.

A few more photos from my neighbor’s garden…

Last night, while we were chatting, I told Bill about a sweet moment I experienced yesterday, while walking the dogs. If you are a regular reader of the travel blog, you might remember that back in March, I had an upsetting encounter with students at a school near our home. At the time, I didn’t realize that the old elementary school in our neighborhood had been turned into a school for kids with special needs.

On that day, I was walking Noyzi and Charlie, and ran into a group of kids coming down a narrow little “Weg” near the school and our house. I was on my way up, and they were on their way down. Unbeknownst to me, there was a girl in that group who was deathly afraid of dogs. One of the kids had said something to me, but I couldn’t hear or understand him.

I kept walking, and they all started screaming at me. I got really angry and screamed back in English, which shocked them into silence. Then their teacher explained and apologized. It was awkward, and I was really rattled afterwards.

Well… almost three months have since passed since that encounter, and I’ve mostly avoided any other altercations with the kids at the school. Then yesterday, as I was walking back toward the “Weg”, I heard a group of them walking down the street, headed toward our Dorfplatz.

Most days, I do a loop from my house, down the hill, around the block next to the Dorfplatz. Then, I often walk back through the Dorfplatz on the other side and head back up the hill. At the top of the hill is the street where the school is, and where Bill and I live.

I was in kind of an irritated mood. There are a lot of cars near the Dorfplatz, and I had just dodged several of them, trying to walk the dogs. I also had to avoid cars passing as I bent down to clean up one of Noyzi’s large dumps. He had suddenly dropped a load on the side of the street. Noyzi was in the street, because we’d just had to navigate around a bunch of low slung posts, that, I guess, are meant to keep people from parking on the side of the Dorfplatz, but are a real pain to walk around with dogs on leashes. The leashes often get snagged on the posts.

When I saw and heard the group of kids headed for the school, I hung back, just in case any of them feared the dogs. The last thing I was in the mood for was being screamed at again by a bunch of youngsters with special needs.

Then, as I waited on the Dorfplatz, the group of kids started to cross the street. I noticed one of them, a boy of about twelve or so, had seen the dogs and me. He offered a sincere warm smile and a wave. I was immediately moved, so I smiled and waved back, and he smiled even bigger. 🥰

That brief moment really warmed my heart, and helped propel me back home with a boost of positive energy. I also immediately realized why some people love working with children who have special needs. Sometimes they can really surprise you with a pureness of heart and genuine innocence that is completely disarming.

I hadn’t realized how much I really needed that little mental boost, and the warm fuzzies that came with it. Lately, I’ve been feeling pretty fatigued with everything. I love Germany and I really appreciate living here, but sometimes I would kind of like to go “home”… Then I realize what’s currently going on at “home”, and conclude that I would rather stay here. 😬 Germany is wonderful, and in many ways, it does feel more like home than it used to, but sometimes I do miss being in my homeland… at least the way it used to be before the Trump invasion.

Lately, it’s been hard to stay optimistic… and I was pretty upset after that initial encounter with those kids in March, followed by the workman who brazenly showed me his “junk” while standing on my neighbor’s unfinished balcony. But that one warm smile from a friendly boy in a group of youngsters was like a balm for lonely old me…

That young lad doesn’t know it, but he really brightened my day. ♥️. A warm smile and a wave from a stranger can be like a precious gift sometimes. It definitely helped me dispel some of my recent cynicism about life.

Incidentally, here are a few photos I took on a walk I took on the longer route, the other day… I noticed some of my neighbors are doing some beautification projects– painting and remodeling and such.

Well, tomorrow afternoon, Bill will finally be home at last. I look forward to seeing him. Being home alone for over a week, with no one to talk to, is hard sometimes. But, at least I have my dogs, even though they drop stinky loads on the street that I have to clean up while dodging cars. 😏

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Romania

Crosspost: Hugo and Viva put things in perspective

This post also appears on my main blog, The Overeducated Housewife.

I was really struggling for something to write about today. I wanted to write something nice… something non-depressing. I wanted to write something different than my usual stuff. As I was enjoying lunch with Bill, I happened across a new video posted about a disabled dog I’ve been following on Facebook. His name is Hugo, and he has a Facebook page all of his own.

I first became aware of Hugo when my German friend, Susanne, shared his story with me. Hugo was born in Romania, where there is a big problem with stray dogs. Someone very cruel wanted Hugo dead, and decided he should die in an incredibly inhumane way. This person took Hugo to a pile of snow, tied up his legs with wire, and left him there to suffer as he waited to die in agony. No one knows how long he was left like that. Although the dog did manage to free himself, unfortunately, when he was found, all four of his feet were necrotic. The vets in Romania could see that Hugo was a fighter, so they decided not to euthanize him. But all four of his paws had to be amputated, leaving him with stumps that didn’t want to heal too easily.

Hugo’s story… in German.

For six months, Hugo was unable to stand up, and he lost a lot of muscle. He was eventually adopted by a German woman who lives in Baden-Württemberg. Unfortunately, the stumps were miserable for Hugo. His new “mom” tried everything she could think of to help him. One day, she asked for ideas about how to cover his stumps on Facebook. A local shoemaker named Daniel came to the rescue and made custom shoes for Hugo. The shoes made all the difference. Hugo can now walk and run, although the shoes have to be repaired occasionally. Daniel did this work for free– unless you count the chocolate he was given by Hugo’s grateful family, who make it a habit to adopt special needs dogs.

On December 12, Hugo’s family visited the Tierheim (animal shelter) in Heilbronn, where they found a little dog named Viva who has no hind legs and gets around using a “wheelchair”. Hugo came along for the ride so he could meet Viva. Apparently Hugo liked Viva just fine and was happy to have a new “sister”. Viva became part of Hugo’s family, along with an existing blind dog named Bertl. Another dog, still in Romania, will soon be joining these three. And how are Hugo and Viva getting along? See for yourself! Bertl is also in the video, but plays a supporting role.

When I saw the video I linked above, my heart just melted. These two dogs don’t seem to realize that they’re in any way “handicapped”. They’re happy as they can be to be able to play together in a loving home. And they’re able to play pretty much as if they were both completely normal dogs.

Maybe I should think about Hugo and his friends next time I’m feeling depressed and incompetent. A lot of people would have euthanized Hugo when they saw how badly injured he was when he was found in Romania. But he was given a chance and he’s risen to the occasion. The same goes for little Viva, who is certainly living up to her name. Both of these dogs have indomitable spirits, and they have been able to thrive thanks to the loving care of good people who were willing to find a way to surmount what must have seemed like insurmountable problems.

There are some really terrible people in the world. People who have no qualms about screwing over their neighbors to get what they want. People who would resort to violence and threats to get their way. People who are abusive and mean, who lie, cheat, and steal, or commit violent acts against innocents.

But there are also people who would help dogs like Viva and Hugo, and do whatever it takes to give them a good and loving home with an excellent quality of life. And there are kind people like Daniel who want to help, and create special shoes that not only helped Hugo, but also provide a precedent for another animal who might be in the same predicament. My heart is so full after watching these two beautiful animals play together, so happy and carefree, and really wishing for nothing more than what they already have. We could all learn a lot from them.

Incidentally, our own rescue dogs are doing great, too. Noyzi, our pooch from Kosovo, is getting more and more acclimated by the day. This morning, I let him out to pee and he got a sudden burst of crazy dog and went tearing around the garden at top speed. You’d have to see him in person to understand what that looks like. Noyzi is a big boy, so he can cross our backyard in just a few strides. But he’s quick and agile and can turn on a dime. He was especially animated this morning, and kept dive bombing Bill’s empty garden plot, which is still full of soil. When he was finished getting the tickles out of his feet, he came back inside and relaxed, very contented and happy.

Noyzi has discovered people food. He’s a fan.

I have never once regretted adopting any of the dogs we’ve had. Noyzi has been especially rewarding to get to know. He’s come so far in just under three months. He’s still afraid of Bill, but every day, he’s a little bit less so. It’s obvious that he loves having a family and a nice warm bed of his own. It’s an honor to be able to provide that for him.

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