Crimson - Dixie

I roll the word crimson around in my mind, looking for an image, a sensation, a memory. What I get is another word: scarlet. Dramatic red. Scarlet O'Hara. The Scarlet Pimpernel. Will Scarlet. Finally, a personal image arrives---Scarlet the cocker spaniel. There she is: carmel colored, scruffy, her macrame leash dragging on the ground, her big brown eyes wide-open to the world.

I only knew Scarlet as an old dog, but I heard stories about her from the Welfare Department people and also from Candace herself, Scarlet's owner. Young Scarlet was so cute it was ridiculous. When she wagged her tail, her whole body wriggled, her ears fluttered, and her toenails twittered on the sidewalk as she did her doggie dance. Scarlet went everywhere with Candace. Usually dogs are not allowed in the Welfare Office, but when Candace came in, Scarlet was greeted happily by all of us, including the director. We had treats for Scarlet at our desks, and doggie toys. In fact, Scarlet got so much attention, we would sometimes forget about Candace and not realize it until she was heading out the door, perfectly content, it seemed, to avoid explaining herself to some nosey social worker.

Candace was not a street person, though she hung out there a lot. She had an apartment. Once she worked as a clerk at the Welfare Department, before her shit hit the fan. She used to be included in the many-roomates houses that the girls in their 20's shared. But somewhere along the line, Candace started to crumble. She got fat. She withdrew to her separate studio apartment. She stopped working. The lives of girls in their 20's are so busy and chaotic that only a few people noticed the changes, and they didn't know what to do. It was Scarlet who stopped the free fall for Candace.

Scarlet came from the Pets in Need people. She supposedly had a "bad temperament," or so her owners said when they turned her over to the dog pound. Candace's neighbor forced Scarlet on her, "just for a week until we place her." Past the chewing puppy stage, but not yet full grown, Scarlet was a little wild, a little spooked, and in need of some serious grooming. Candace had no idea about what to do with a dog, but when the week was up, Scarlet stayed, and a long period of contentment began for both of them.

As it turned out, Scarlett outlived Candace, but this is not that story.

Jumpstart prompt: Crimson
6/9/07