Baxley: A Man and Woman's Best Friend

My dog Baxley is eight years old. If you have taken the time to read my autobiography, you already know that he has been with me since he was old enough to be without his “birth mother”. Now, I am “Mommy”. I will now attempt and try to put into words what my life has been like with this new addition to our family.
When James and I had been married for almost a year, we adopted a kitten from the animal shelter. (I had never had a dog and I wanted a kitten for companionship since James did a fair amount of traveling with his job.) We had her until we moved to Wilmington which was 2001. In April of 2001, James asked if we could get a puppy. I agreed. Since I had never had a dog before, I let James pick out the breed, etc. that he wanted. James said he would like to have a lab or a beagle. While looking through the paper one Saturday afternoon I ran across an ad that someone had placed. They were giving away free lab and beagle mix puppies to a good home. I took the newspaper in to where James was sitting. After looking it over, he called the number that was listed and spoke to the lady that had the puppies. We drove to Oak Island that afternoon, and picked out our puppy. (That story is mentioned in my autobiography also.) The day we picked him up the lady gave us a box to put him in, (lid open of course), to carry him home. Baxley never peed in the box all the way home, like I thought he would. So I was thinking…we have a perfect puppy. Oh how deceiving (Ha, Ha)

The first night home was an experience. It was the night before Sunrise Service at church. James has to get up around 4:30 or so to get ready for the service because he has to set up sound equipment, etc. Baxley cried all night. The only thing that calmed him was James being right beside him while Baxley lay in his crate. That was a long night for both of us, but especially James. Over the next day or two, James set aside time to make vet appointments, get dog food, collar, toys, bones…all the things a growing boy needs…the puppy, not James. We even bought puppy pads….note here…they do not work! We put down puppy pads, but Baxley didn’t pee or poop on them….he found places where there were no puppy pads to do his business. By the way, pee has been nick-named “good things”, and poop has been nick-named “bad things”, by us. His good things and bad things all over different places of the house nearly drove me crazy…that’s a short drive! One day we left him in the crate to get some things done and didn’t want him running everywhere…it must’ve been too long for his little bladder because James went to check on him, and he had done bad things, and managed to get it all over him and the crate. Oh, what a mess!!! Baxley finally got house-trained and I was so glad. The only other time he’s had an accident since being house-trained was about four years ago and at least he did good things on the kitchen floor where it could be mopped up, and not on the carpet.

Baxley never chewed up anything of real significance that I can recall. No shoes, no clothes, no knick-knacks that are kept around the house. He was very good. However, he did like to pull things out of the trash can---could be toilet paper, Kleenex, paper plates, etc. I finally wised up and put the trash can in the pantry. He grabs the occasional tissue or wadded up paper from a trash can in the study or another room, but that is just to get our attention…we’ve learned. One time while riding with Daddy and a co-worker in Daddy’s truck, he ate the ear bob right off the lady’s ear. She thought she had lost it. We found it a couple of days later when Baxley was doing bad things. He’s never been a dog to be real calm. The vet told us that once he was “fixed” he would calm down some. The vet was WRONG. Ha ha.

Baxley has surprised me at times. One day when I arrived home from work, I found the back door wide open. Nothing had been stolen but I guess the door may have been left ajar and blown open by the wind. Anyway…I thought that Baxley may have run out because I didn’t see him when I walked in the house. I checked through the rest of the house 1. to make sure nothing had been stolen, and 2. to see if Baxley actually stayed there. Good news! Nothing had been stolen AND Baxley was still in the house. I was so glad and relieved!!!!

Daddy found a place called Dogs at Play. It is a “day-care” for dogs. You take them there in the morning and pick them up when you get off work. They have a big playground, a pool, toys, etc. that are for their play time. Also, if you need to be gone for one night or a few nights they have overnight accommodations, too. Plus, someone stays there with the dogs all the time so they are never alone. Baxley LOVES this place. You mention “day-care” or “Dogs at Play” and you better be ready to take him because he knows exactly what you’re saying and he’s ready to go. He comes home worn out and recuperates in a couple of days.

Baxley has his own favorite toys, and his crate is cushioned, but one place that he has claimed as his is the seat at the bay window. It faces the street that we live on and the pool is right across the street. He would lay there from sun-up till sun-down if he could. If someone pulls up or he sees a strange vehicle or even if he sees a strange or unleashed dog…we know it because he is in the bay window and he will bark until the situation is resolved. He’s got a watchful eye and nothing gets by him.

I never knew I would feel about a dog the way I feel about Baxley. He is such an important part of my life. He is there for us when we are down or hurting, and he is there for us to make us smile and laugh. He has unconditional love for Mommy and Daddy, and other friends and family members that he knows. I was not able to have children, and Baxley is as much my child as one can be. I love him and would do anything possible for him. I am his Mommy and am proud of it.

My Autobiography

I was born on November 21, 1969 to Donald and Gladys Simpson, and one sister, Teresa, whom is five years older than me. As far back as I can remember, our family always went to church on Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night. My parents were devout Christians, and I loved them dearly. My sister, who thought I was her “baby doll”, always “catered” to me, and still does. Being brought up in a Christian home, I had always heard about Christ’s love for us, and how He died so that we could spend eternal life with Him. At the age of seven and a half, I asked Jesus to come into my life, and He has never let me down. I had a happy childhood, and sometimes wish I could go back there. However, my teenage years were quite different…

One day as I sat at the lunch table with my other eighth-grade friends, my principal came to get me. He told me that I needed to go to my classroom, and get my books because my neighbor was there to pick me up. (I thought this was somewhat weird, but I went along with it. My Daddy had been sick, and mother had told me that some medical people may have to bring him an oxygen tank, so I thought that is why I was being called out of school.) I got my belongings together and got in my neighbor’s car. She dropped me off at home and told me to go on inside. Our home had recently undergone some renovating. The carport had been enclosed and made into a den. I opened the door to my home, and was standing in the den. I looked up into the kitchen and saw this strange man on the phone. I didn’t know who he was so I just thought I was stay put for a minute. The next few words I heard him speak are words that I will never forget. He said to the person on the other end of the phone “Is this Cox Funeral Home?” No one had to tell me who had died. I knew it was my Daddy…my hero. The next few days were filled with many tears, a lot of people coming to the house, funeral home visits, and then the funeral. At 2:00pm, on November 4, 1983, my Daddy was laid to rest.

The rest of my teenage years were filled with ups and downs. Many of the things I went through may not have been good at the time, but I ended up learning from them. Mostly learning if I had listened to my Mother instead of trying things out for myself, I could have saved myself from a lot of heartache and disappointment. One big “UP” moment in my life, happened the summer before my Senior Year of high school; my nephew was born. He was the most beautiful baby boy I had ever seen! He was born on June 11, 1987, and his name was Christopher. I held him every chance I got. His mom and dad just lived the next street over from us so that was really nice!!!! We were together so much, that a little girl at church asked her mommy why Christopher had two mommies. When Christopher was old enough, I took him everywhere I could with me (when allowed), and then when he was two or three, we started going on little “dates”. He was my little man, and even though he is grown today, he will always be my little man.

I graduated from high school, and then it was on to college. I didn’t live very far from college so I commuted. In the summer before I started college, I was asked to be a student worker at the college that I would be attending in the fall. This opened different doors for me and allowed me to branch out of my small, shy little girl into a young, not as shy, adult. The first year at college was good, nothing out of the ordinary. I continued to work at the college through the summer, and was looking forward to finishing my associate degree the coming school year. Little did I know that something that impacted my life would happen the night before the fall semester started. I had been asked (more like ‘coaxed’) by some of my co-workers to attend the fall dance. My hesitation was instinct but I finally gave in and said I would go. This guy that I had met before my freshman year ended, came up and spoke to me at the dance. We talked, walked around the campus, danced, and talked some more. That “guy” turned out to be the man that God had picked for me to marry….James Strickland.

After dating for three years, and three months exactly, we tied the knot. It was a simple ceremony at my church at 2:00pm on November 21st. (Yes, I got married on my wedding day…best birthday present ever!) James wrote the words and music to a song just for me that was sung by our soloist. The title of it was “Donna Marie”. Even when I watch the video of our wedding today, the song still brings tears to my eyes. My nephew was five years old and he was our ring bearer. He was not sure how all the wedding stuff worked, and he thought once I got married that he would not see me again. Therefore, my nephew cried all the way through the wedding. He wouldn’t speak to James; he didn’t like the idea that James was taking me away from him. However, when Christopher found out that he would still get to see me, he started calling James, Uncle James, and it has been that way for almost 17 years, and counting.

We started off in a one bedroom apartment in the city of Spartanburg. It was small, but it was home, and it was ours. I was working at Cracker Barrel; I had transferred from the store where I was working in Anderson, SC to the store in Spartanburg, SC. James was working at a Christian music/supply store. In December of 1992, James was called on board at First Baptist North Spartanburg, (which is the church that he had attended since moving to Spartanburg when he was in the seventh grade.) In July of 1993, I accepted a job offer from the community college in Spartanburg, and have been in the educational field ever since.

James and I started looking at houses to buy in 1994. We were able to find one in the early stages of being built, and with over ¾ acre of land, in a nice subdivision. Picking out the colors of the wallpaper, carpeting, lighting, etc. was fun. We moved in on August 21st, 1994. We had a nice house with a huge front porch, and back deck, and more house than we had furniture to fill it up. We loved that house and lived there until 2001, when James was called to a church in Wilmington, NC as a youth pastor. The day the movers came to pack up our belongings was the day after Christmas; that was rough…

We moved to a small apartment in Wilmington because we were still waiting for our house to sell in Spartanburg. It was not exactly what we were hoping for in an apartment, but we needed somewhere to live because James started work there the next week.

James decided that he would like to have a dog. I had never had a dog. When I was a child, I was scared-to-death of dogs. I got over that fear when my sister and her husband, got a dog. We looked in the newspaper and this lady in Oak Island had some puppies that she would give away to a good home. We went and looked at the puppies. They were a lab and beagle mix. She had yellow, brown, and black puppies. I picked up one puppy and put it back down. Then, I saw one back in the corner lying down. I told her that I would like to see him. She handed him to me and then said, “Oh, you probably don’t want him. He’s not very active.” Well, he latched on to me with his puppy claws and I couldn’t, and didn’t let go. That’s the one that would be ours. We got to pick him up the day before Easter, 2001, and gave him the name Baxley. He has been our pride and joy ever since. …and he is very active!!!

Our house finally sold six months after moving here and we began looking for a home. The search was long and tedious, but we found one that we both liked and after some negotiating we were able to purchase it. Before our house in Spartanburg sold, I landed a job in Wilmington at a private college. I was there seven years, and even earned my bachelor’s degree and graduated Cum Laude while working. Presently, I work at a university and am very happy!

Moving to Wilmington brought about many changes in my life. It was the first time I was more than 300+ miles away from my family, the summer months brought with them tropical storms and hurricanes, none of which I am fond of, even though I live at the beach I don’t get to visit it much because I work, and I’ve had to deal with something physically every year. My most painful physical experience came in 2006. I had started a new drug for my rheumatoid arthritis and I had a serious reaction to it that landed me in the hospital for five days; the first day I was in CCU. I had developed a serious case of Pericarditis, and had to have a thoracentesis. Two liters of fluid was drained off from around the wall of my heart. Needless to say, I never took that drug again.

Although I have had a fair share of ups and downs, God has always seen me through. He has never let me down. He has always brought me through many valleys and He has taught me things from those trials. I know that I have failed Him, but God is a gracious God and a forgiving God. He has blessed me with a wonderful family, great friends, good health, and a passion to tell others what Christ has done for me, and what He can do for them. I serve an awesome God, and He is my Savior.