The Slippery Slide

The second sentence here proved telling in ways my mother could not have recognized at the time. Paddy was our lovable--if neurotic--boston bull terrier. Terrified of storm drains and dark closets, she would attack and kill soccer balls, and loved walks and people and, of all things, slippery slides ...

November 10, 1997

Dear Peter,

It’s hard to believe it’s nearly Valentines already. My life will be over before I know it. Time is racing by these days. We had a beautiful snow storm Saturday night, and Sunday was a fairyland. Katie and I and Paddy went walking in the snow on the unpowed streets and unshoveled walks. Soft, easy walking. I brought my camera and asked Katie to take Paddy up on the platform at the totlot for a picture. Afterward, she let go of the leash, and Paddy went down the slide, ears pricked forward, looking for all the world like she was having a wonderful time. Just to see how she really felt about it, Katie took her up without the leash, and she went down again without our suggestion. She is a fun dog. She enjoyed plowing into the snow at the bottom and sending it spraying as she zoomed down.