GOODBYE BOMI

     My dream was to be a famous CEO in a big company. But everything changed. I never thought I would work in an animal hospital instead.

7 years ago

     What a beautiful day. I woke up and got ready for school. I lived in an apartment alone because my parents passed away in a car accident 2 years ago and I couldn’t live with my grandparents since there were no schools around the small village. I bought my breakfast from Uncle Jung’s mini stand. I sat on a bench while I enjoyed my food. Suddenly, I heard faint cries. I turned my head and I saw a stray dog looking at me with pity. I ignored it but it started to scratch my leg and climbed on my lap. I felt so annoyed because other than that, my pants were stained. I kicked the dog and it ran away.

     The next day, that dog came again and asked for food. I decided to give a chicken bone to it. The dog was so grateful and it ate the bone quickly, then it sat beside me while I finished my food. I went to school and it followed me, even it accompanied me home. That happened every day and I grew closer and closer to this dog. But this evening, it didn’t greet me at the school gate. I looked around but I couldn’t find it. I ran to the park where I usually played with it and in the road, I saw a crowd of people pushing each other to have a better look at something. I tiptoed and there, I saw the dog lying lifelessly on the road with a pool of blood. I cried for hours until all the people had gone away. They said a car hit it. I buried it at the park and walked home. I just lost a good friend of mine, I regretted what I did to it the first time we met. Goodbye, bestie.

Few months later…

     I finally graduated from high school but I didn’t have enough money to enter college so I decided to work in a coffee shop near my apartment. Last week, I visited a pet adoption center to bring back memories of Mi Hee, funny that I just named it after it died, and I ended up adopting a female Siberian Husky. I took care of her and love her with all my heart. I didn’t pick her in the first place, she approached me.

     “Hey fluffy tail, what do you think should I name you?” I crazily talked to a dog. It licked my hand. I walked and sat on the bench near the park where Mi Hee died. I got emotional and as I looked up, I realized that it was spring.

     “What a beautiful spring day. Hmm.. I will name you Bomi. You like it?”

2 years later…

     I collected enough money and finally I could go to college next month! But the problem was that Bomi looked sick since the last time she was groomed. She had red and watery eyes and she had vomited 5 times this week. The vet said it was just allergies and digestive problems so he gave me a medicine and an eyedrop. But her condition got worse, she lost her appetite and got high fever and diarrhea. It was late at night and I brought her to a pet shop but it was closed. I banged the door and yelled. Luckily, a vet heard it and brought us in. I went in the waiting room while he checked Bomi.

     The doctor called me to come in and told me that unfortunately, Bomi was infected by distemper virus. He assumed that she got infected in the grooming place since the virus was contagious. He said that there were no cures for distemper and she would suffer from difficulties of walking and breathing, pneumonia, and partial paralysis which lead to slow but painful death. He suggested that she should be put to sleep so she wouldn’t suffer. I didn’t want that but I didn’t want her to suffer either. I heavy-heartedly took the decision to say my last goodbye to Bomi and did the procedure in the next day.

     I had to face reality which was cruel. I buried her next to Mi Hee. I looked up to see falling dead leaves.

I wiped my tears. “Goodbye, Bomi.”

5 years later

     This animal hospital I worked in wasn’t just an animal hospital, this is MY hospital and the first animal hospital here. Only if this existed 5 years ago. Bomi would’ve been treated better so she had big chance to survive. This hospital operated 24 hours and I hired great scientists to find cures for all diseases.vv