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would clip on the leash and together they would walk.
Schooner repeated the process until my mother regained her inner strength and began to walk everyday. My mother informed me that hills were hard to climb, being weak from the chemotherapy. However, Schooner would only let her pause for a few minutes before he would then pull her up the hill. It was an accomplishment to make it up that hill for my mother. This gave her confidence and hope, which fueled her motivation to defeat her cancer. Some days were too hard to walk for my mother as she was too sick to move, but Schooner would still not let her be defeated. He would sit by her side all day, smiling at her while she petted him. Sometimes my mother would become upset and would cry, and Schooner would immediately run to his toy box and bring back a toy to my mother placing it beside her head. She would then throw it down the hall and he would chase it and bring it back, always placing it in the same place. Schooner made my mother avoid thinking thoughts of defeat and sadness, and instead made her focus on him and the fun things in life. No one was able to give this kind of support.

Eight months later my mother won over her battle against cancer. Schooner had forced her to have hope and fight, even when things were tough. He made sure all hills were climbed until the destination was reached. My parents never talked about sending Schooner away again. He had embedded himself into our lives as our hero.

Learn more about this author, Allyson Finley.
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