I have lost Mu about a hundred times. Each time it happens, I think, “Okay, next time I’m not going to be fooled.” Then I trick myself again. It happens like this. I think Mu is supposed to be in the living room, but I look around and don’t see him. I check the fireplace and his favorite sleeping spots on the couches. Sometimes he sprawls on the floor. Did I forget to let him in when we went outside? I check the bedroom. A couple of times a dog has gone into the bathroom and bumped the door closed, becoming trapped. I’m checking the bathroom and Mu comes up behind me, like, What are you looking for? I say, “Mu, where were you? Didn’t you hear me calling?” Then I remember. There is a chair in the living room that has a high back, and it’s up against a large window. When Mu sits in this chair, he is dark brown, enveloped in shadow, against the blinding brightness outside. You can look right at him and not see him. He was probably sitting in the chair the whole time, thinking, I’m right here. Are you blind? Hopefully, next time I lose Mu, I will check the chair first before I panic.
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James Branson
Principal at Three Retrievers Lost Pet Rescue, volunteer at Useless Bay Sanctuary, author of A Voice for the Lost Archives
December 2019
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