Three years prior to seventh grade, my parents uprooted my family from Florida to move to Texas for better financial opportunities. This sudden life change led me to question everything I knew as a 9-year-old child, and I became distraught while being forced to move 1,200 miles away from the person who knew me better than anyone in the world: my best friend for eight years.

I never had the opportunity to process the fact we were moving to a new place nor did I have any input on the decision of choosing where my family would move to, but Texas definitely was not my first choice. During my first year of living in this cowboy country, my hatred for the state grew.

Because of how traumatizing the event of leaving my best friend was, I struggled with having enough social skills and confidence to keep a simple conversation with my peers. At this time the circle of people who were considered my friends could be counted on one hand, so my parents decided it would be in my best interest if we were to adopt a dog.

Long days of endlessly scrolling through adoption websites and Craigslist advertisements eventually turned into months of searching. When my parents and I finally found the dog who would eventually become my best friend, I was ecstatic. This would lead to the life changing event that was gravely needed.

Lucas was an abandoned 4-month-old miniature schnauzer mixed puppy when my family and I first welcomed him into our lives. As a puppy, he was malnourished and not much larger than a soccer ball. At first, his coat gave the appearance of a tuxedo, but as he grew older his coat developed into a mixture of different textures and colors ranging from the deepest shades of black to bright white.

As a 12 year old who did not have any prior experience of being responsible for another life, adjusting to having a living creature whose life was dependent on how responsible I was seemed impossible. After several months of walking Lucas three or four times a day, along with constantly monitoring the amount of food and water he had available, the habits became a normal part of my everyday routine. Not only was I in charge of my own set of chores around the house, but now I had the added responsibility of being the caregiver of baby Lucas.

Throughout the four years that Lucas and I have been best friends we have faced countless obstacles, such as tumor scares and venomous snake bites, but these events only forced my relationship with him to become stronger. Lucas has become a significant part of my life, and I have found that having a dog allows me to connect with even more people on another level.

Adopting a dog was the best gift I have ever received, as it not only forced me to become more responsible, but also allowed me to have a new best friend to create lifelong memories with.