Laddie
When I hear the word Laddie, I think of the Scottish term that describes a young man. My wife Cindy Morrison Beck was of Scottish descent. Her ancestors came from the Isle of Lewis in the Hebrides Islands northwest of Scotland.
I also have family memories associated with the word Laddie. My uncle Charles Bottomley and Aunt Violet Miner Bottomley owned a long haired dog of collie mixture. His shaggy coat was black with some brown patches and a white star on its chest. My recollection was of my uncle on the porch laughing at Laddie and me. What caused him to laugh? I was holding Laddie’s chain leash and Uncle Charles called, “Here, Laddie.” When he did, the dog was off like a shot. I was pulled from my feet and suspended in the air like a banner in the wind before gravity claimed me and was dragged through the grass behind this canine rocket. I was either too surprised or too stupid to let go of the leash.
The second memory falls to a time when I was exploring in the woods behind our home. I heard a whimpering sound and followed it. I found a puppy in a decayed hollow space at the bottom of a tree. Carrying him back to our house Sybil Miner Beck my mom said, “We can’t keep him.” Then she said, “Look at those paws. He’ll be huge. Let’s see if we can find him a home.”
I’m not sure who she asked, but the dog ended up at my grandparents Ray and Rebecca Rugg Miner’s farm. Grandma immediately called him Laddie. This could easily been the end of the story, but my grandfather had a way with animals and Laddie became his guardian angel. Laddie arrived at a good time. Granddad’s dementia was worsening. He would sometimes wander around the farm to care for animals that he no longer had. Laddie was his constant companion. Wherever Granddad strayed, Laddie was at his side.
The incident I am recalling occurred was when Granddad got lost in a wooded section of his farm. When he didn’t come back to the house Grandma became worried and called the family to search. They came and scoured the farm, checking in unused buildings and the rubble of the collapsed barn, then expanded to search the fields and woods. They found Laddie laying at Granddad’s feet watching over him. When questioned, Granddad said, “I was tired and sat down to rest.”