Week 2 Storytelling: Echo

Abandoned dog by Alexas_Fotos

One late night, Echo escaped her backyard to wander the small town. She is known to be very curious and vocal when things are astray; however, she left without making a peep. After walking for a few hours through ominous back roads Echo discovered she got caught up in the moment and somehow ended up far away from home. As she tried to retrace her steps, Echo did not notice the midnight blue truck coming right at her.

BOOM.

The reckless driver didn’t even care to stop and check if she was okay.

The next morning a local in the next town over noticed wounded Echo on her way to work. Echo’s dog tag only said her name with no address or phone number to contact, so the stranger graciously swooped Echo up and dropped her off at the nearest animal shelter. Echo suffered severe injuries to her hind legs and rear end. One of her legs were not functional anymore because of the collision, so the doctors at the shelter opted to amputate it.

What was once bright and radiant golden, her whole body now appears gloomy and burnt orange. Echo was no longer the cheerful and friendly dog she once was. No smiles or excited barks. No more curiosity.

Days pass and Echo was slowly but surely recovering. She hobbled everywhere and her cuts are now just scabs. Her mood lifted ever so slightly, but she was still stuck in a sad rut. Soon enough Echo was put up for adoption because her owners never came to claim her. Maybe they did not recognize her or maybe they did not care enough to search for her; that is still a mystery.

A countless amount of people came and searched for a perfect puppy to take home, but no one seemed to care for the old mutts, much less a disabled one. All Echo wanted was a little attention. She would purposely sit against the cage in the most viewable area, but no one notices her. She let out a faint whimper every time someone walked right by her cage. Echo’s lost hope and now lay hidden in the back.

One time, a 6 year-old boy came up to her cage and screamed, “Is anyone here?” Echo barked excitedly in response and clumsily ran up to the boy. He sat down right in front of Echo’s cell. He started telling her a story about a time he had a dog just like her and how she died of old age. The little boy got up and asked the workers if he could play with her, and immediately they opened up the cage for him. This was the happiest Echo has been in months. Finally the affection she has been patiently waiting for.

The little boy’s mom came up to him and asked if he has found any dog that he liked. He frantically tried to convince his mother that he wanted Echo, but she profoundly was hesitant. She did not want him to have a dog so old and disabled. The boy lost the fight and they left empty handed… and Echo remained.

Though Echo did not understand what was being said, she knew she was rejected. She got her hopes up to just be left alone again.

A few weeks go by and one day an elderly man came in and stood by Echo’s cage. Echo vaguely looked up for a second then put her head back down. She didn’t think he was interested in her.

“Why do you hide from me?” he asked.

Echo looked up again realizing he was speaking to her. She walked over cautiously and let him pet her head. He mumbled some words to a worker nearby, and they slowly took her out of the cage. The man put a leash on Echo, and she thought she was just going for a walk. Little did Echo know, she was moving to her forever home.

Bibliography: Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Echo sees Narcissus by Tony Kline

Author’s Note: I decided to play with the characteristics that the original Echo had, but change her into a dog. Echo is disabled, lonely, yearned for attention/affection, and got rejected. This is a more modern take and incorporates a completely different location. I put in a few quotes such as “Is anyone here?” to resemble the original version. Most importantly, instead of Echo rotting away I wanted her to have a happier ending.