by Lucia Daramus


It was June. Lucia was in a car which raced towards a small town from Northern England. She was going to pick up her new friend, PAM. She named him PAM after her spiritual father: P-etru A-drian M-ircea (PAM). An acronym.
PAM was a small fur ball, round, yellowish, fluffy, with a wet nose, big shining black eyes and a small tail between his back legs, behind which he was hiding. The puppy was only 8 weeks old and he was scared.
Hello, puppy, little golden ball, don’t be afraid, Lucia said. I am your new friend. I will spoil you, love you, and finally, tame you.
The little puppy was very surprised when he heard that he would have a new friend with whom to play with and who would love him. But, he was also, very confused, because he did not understand the meaning of I will tame you.
With his big amazed eyes, he opened his mouth and spoke: what does tame you mean? Does it hurt?
Lucia laughed out loud. No, it doesn’t hurt. It is quite pleasant. You will be the most special puppy in the entire world, the most special puppy in the entire Universe. I will take care of you, I will love you…that means that I have tamed you… then, you will love me.
When PAM the puppy heard what the girl said, he suddenly felt very happy. He was going to be the most special puppy. Not just any puppy, but the most special.
They got home, in Stroud. It was already late. PAM got some special food for babies, because he was still a baby dog, then Lucia tucked him in a bed just for PAM the puppy. She caressed his short haired and yellowish fur, tickled his belly, and then kissed his cold and wet nose. She also told him I love you, PAM. The puppy fell asleep peacefully.
Lucia didn’t sleep all night because she was nervous. She wouldn’t wait until morning and at 4 o’clock, bright early, she went down the stairs to PAM’s bed where he was sleeping. She looked at him. He was so small and cute! PAM felt her. He jumped off his bed straight to Lucia’s arms and licked her face, wagging his tail with excitement. Suddenly, a pungent smell came from the room’s floor. In the middle of the floor tile, there was a big poop. PAM went straight for the pile of poop and started to gobble it.
PAM , Lucia said, you’re not allowed to eat poo. I will give you some puppy food in a second. But PAM was gobbling on his poop.
Oh, dear....Lucia says. The girl leans down quickly and gathered the pile of poop. PAM, the joker, jumped with his front paws on Lucia and licked her lips with his tongue full of faeces. Lucia shouted with laughter. That’s how their friendship started.
The time for their walk came. Puppies need a lot of exercise and fresh air to be in good health. But Lucia had a problem. She was suffering from schizophrenia and Asperger syndrome. Most of the time she was alone, preoccupied with numbers, she collected rocks, heard voices, she thought she was followed by people who only she could see, she couldn’t communicate normally with people, she had networking problems and many other problems. Sometimes when she went out of the house, accompanied, she counted everything around her…numbers and words obsessed her. She acquired words later on though, due to the fact that she learned how to speak quite tardily.
And still, on that day, Lucia gathered her courage and went out to Stratford Park, a green place in her small town. It was a big park, with very old trees, with thick branches, reaching up in to the sky. There was also a lake, and on its surface there was a swan with its family who spoke in Arabic .. ..hualap sâsâc vâsâc....hualaaap sâsâc vâsâc...the swan said.
Good morning, said a gentleman with another dog. Is your dog a Labrador? What’s his name?
Lucia did not respond. She calls PAM to her, but PAM wanted to play with the other dog. Finally, they didn’t stay too long in the park, because Lucia felt followed and she could not communicate with people she did not know.
Why are you afraid of people, the puppy asks the girl. I am a puppy and I want to play!
From the end of the alley, another old big dog was coming. Lucia bent over and, carefully, took PAM in her arms.
Oh, put the puppy down. He is not a baby, he’s a dog. He needs to socialize and get used to bigger dogs than him, said the owner with whom they crossed paths. But Lucia ran scared with PAM in her arms straight towards the door of the house.
Inside PAM started to chew on the girl’s slippers.
Are they good? Lucia smiled. Tomorrow we need to visit the doctor, PAM. I need to see why you eat poop.
I' ve never been to the doctor’s. What does doctor mean? Said PAM the Labrador.
He is a nice man, who will consult you, he will give you a little pill for intestinal worms and, because you are only a baby, you will receive a treat.
Yes, I like what I’m hearing, said PAM.
In the room where the two were playing, lolly pops and coloured balloons were flying through the air. PAM was jumping after the candy, but he could only reach the coloured balloons, which he managed to break.. Bommm, the balloon went and scattered pieces of silver paper in the air.
At the vet PAM was scared. He hid his tail between his legs and started to whine. Lucia held him to her chest. The doggy doctor pets him and gives him doggy candy.
PAM eats his poop. Why? Is he ill? Asks Lucia worried.
Don’t worry about it, the puppy is fine. He eats poop because all puppies do that. For them it is something delicious. They especially like cow droppings, because it has vitamins in. But, if you don’t want him to eat poop, put ketchup in his food. It will give faeces a repulsive smell and PAM won’t eat them anymore.
In his evening food Pam had ketchup. Pam the Labrador licked his mouth. The ketchup was very good. But morning came again. On the room’s floor tile diarrhoea was scattered. Oh my , PAM, you have diarrhoea. I will call another vet. But its ok, I will clean it in a second. Lucia started to clean, washed the floor thoroughly and disinfected it. Then she calls the vet.
Hello? This is Lucia. My puppy has diarrhoea. The entire floor was full of diarrhoea this morning.
What did you give him to eat, came from the other end of the telephone.
Ketchup and puppy food.
Oh, no, Ketchup? This is bad, don’t give him that anymore.
But my puppy eats his own poop in the morning. When we go outside he eats cow droppings....
It’s ok, this is normal for a puppy. Let him eat poop.
Yes, now Lucia calmed down. She played music and they both danced happily in the house. PAM was jumping to reach Lucia’s face to lick her. Lucia opened a banana. She read an article about puppy food, in which it said that puppies prefer fruit, especially bananas. But no grapefruit because it’s toxic for puppies. Neither chocolate, because it is pure poison. So, she opened a banana. Give me some, give me some! Pam growled
I know, you like everything. You like to eat? Lucia asked
yes, yes...yesyesyes... I like to eat very much...woof, woof, woof...
And suddenly, he didn’t wait for Lucia to give him a banana piece at a time and he jumped and while he was in the air he caught the banana and instantly chewed it.
Pam’s wet nose rolled, and rolled… his eyes enlarged, he pointed his ears up and suddenly, the entire living room was filled with rivers of carrot puppy juice. PAM was moving his feet happily. Put your tongue in the juice, said PAM.
Oh, no, I don’t like carrot juice, Lucia said.
What? Woof woof woof you don’t like carrot juice? But look how coloured and sweet it is.
Yes, you’re right, it is orange… like your fur…
Somewhere at the end of the carrot river a storm arouses. The wind argued with the little orange river. Hey you should know, said the wind, I am stronger than you.
In your dreams, wind, I am more important than you… because people and puppies drink me, the river said.
Ah c’mon, stop arguing, you both are strong and important, I like carrot juice, wind. And I like to run outside in the wind and when it tickles my nostrils, river! You see, both of you are important for me… woof, woof, woof… Pam yelped.
Lucia thought to herself: what a rogue and pacifist puppy I have....
And all in one breath… the carrot river was slurped by PAM. Now, the puppy was lying on his back and quickly fell asleep.
It was evening. The wind went out of Lucia’s living and blew over the old trees from the park with the lake near the house, where a swan spoke in Arabic.
Woof, woof, woof woof, I want to go outside to feel the evening’s breeze, said PAM.
My dear PAM, I can’t take you outside. There are eyes watching me, new people, many voices....
Woof-woof, woof - woof....I want to go outside... I am with you, don’t be afraid, woof-woof...
Lucia encouraged herself, took a deep breath and took PAM to the park. The puppy was so happy. He was jumping on other puppies, running after their ball, jumping in the biggest mud pools....so that PAM became covered with the earth.
Oh my, PAM, you’re so filthy....your fur is black.
Woof-woof, woof-woof... said the puppy happily. Once inside, Lucia took him straight to the bathroom; she washed him thoroughly with puppy shampoo, rinsed him, perfumed him and dried him with towels. Now, PAM was clean and smelled nice.
Look, PAM, because you are a playful puppy, I am giving you these little red boots with blue spots, so you can wear them when we go outside.
Woof-woof, I like these red boots so much. And because he was so happy he started to chew on the wooden chair from the living room. A tooth fell out, a milk tooth... Time passed and PAM became a 5 month old whelp. His teeth were changing and new stronger ones were growing. Lucia heard some weird noises coming from the dog’s mouth. Pam had began to chew on his tooth. She put her hand in his mouth and took the tooth out.
PAM, this is your first tooth. I will take it and tonight the Tooth Fairy will come, she will take it and she will leave you a bone in return.
PAM the Labrador didn't sleep all night wanting to see the fairy. But because he was very tired when the dawn came he fell asleep and started snoring...horg, horg, horg... snored PAM... Then the fairy came and exchanged his tooth with the bone.
Wow, how angry PAM was the next day because he didn't get to meet the fairy... Because PAM wanted two bones not one.
But he quickly forgot about the fairy, the bones and the tooth because two neighbouring Russian children came to visit. It was a 9 year old boy named Aliosha and a 2 year old girl named Emilia.
Sabaka PAM, sabaka PAM shouted Emilia with enthusiasm. PAM was jumping on Emilia then on Aliosha then on Lucia. They ran down the stairs out of the house and into the yard where PAM ate the roses...
Lucia sabaka PAM ate the roses... now he's eating the lavender...
Sabaka PAM said Lucia in Russian because sabaka means dog! Why are you eating the flowers?! They have to live too!
My oh my, woof-woof, woof-woof... the rose petals were so good, said sabaka PAM.
Lucia opened her laptop and found other barking dogs on the internet. PAM started barking with them and Emilia started mimicking the dog too... inside the house everyone was barking and PAM was very happy. Yet he grew. He was about 7 months old and needed to go outside. He was playing with Lucia every day inside but around lunch time PAM was very sad, he would sit next to the front door scratching it with his paws and cry. Woof-woof... he said with sorrow... I want to go outside
… I can't PAM, I can't go outside, said Lucia feeling the same sorrow. PAM I love you very very much but I think it's better for you if I find you another family to take you outside.
Lucia started crying. She loved PAM very much and she wouldn't give him away but PAM became miserable staying inside all the time. Lucia's tears formed a pond and on its glow white and red water lilies were shivering. With every tear falling off the girl's face another water lily would appear. PAM was also crying because he didn't want to part with Lucia.
After two weeks Lucia found PAM a new family. A gentleman and a lady. His name was Roger and he was very kind. She was named Kannika. She was a beautiful lady with ebony black hair and almond eyes, with very exotic features because Kannika was from Thailand. PAM became friends with them but when he was put in the car he started shaking. Lucia hugged and kissed him and started crying. She cried a lot. But Roger knew how much Lucia was hurting and said to her: don't be sad, don't cry. I know what it's like to miss a dog. We will love PAM, he will have a very big garden where he can play with another Labrador and you can come visit him on Monday.
But Lucia suffered a lot without PAM. On the first night without the dog she didn't sleep at all. She was hearing voices, she especially heard PAM crying. The girl was having hallucinations again. She was seeing PAM scratch the front door. She calls Roger. Hello, it's Lucia. How is PAM?
Relax, said Roger, PAM is sleeping now. He ate and played with the neighbour's Labrador. But you must know something else. On the way to Oxford PAM grew angelic wings. He can fly.
It was true. The next night there was a wing flapping sound at Lucia's window. It was PAM the Labrador.
Good night, Lucia. I will never forget you. Roger and Kannika are very good to me. They caress me, play with me, I have the house and a very big garden at my disposal. I've made a new friend. Don't worry about me.
PAM, PAM, I love you more than anything in the world. I want you to be happy, but it's very hard without you, said Lucia.
Stop crying... woof-woof-woof... with your tears you have filled all the lakes in England with water lilies. Now I must fly to my new home. But know that I love you and I will come to your window every night to tell you: good night, Lucia.
The white and full moon was dripping crystal dust from its crust on PAM's angelic wings, so that he can fly...
Good night, PAM! I will wait for you tomorrow night, and the day after, and all my life... Lucia fell asleep happy because she had seen PAM again.
Woof-woof-woof... said the puppy at the girl's window and then he went away...