A story of pure unconditional love from one of our Aphrodites.
I got married at the age of 22, far too young.
I was from a broken, abusive home with an absent father. In Mark, I saw a man that I thought would be the answer, someone to look after and care for me.
There were many red flags before the big day which, foolishly, I chose to ignore — not least of which was being sexually abused by my future father-in-law. I told Mark, but no-one else.
Mark was dismissive and refused to believe it!
Whoa! That should have been my exit.
How naive and stupid I was!
We bought a house and adopted a rescue puppy, Bella.
She was only 11 weeks old and had been dreadfully abused by her previous owner. She was my everything and, as it turned out, to be my rescuer.
Only 10 months into our marriage, Mark and I were at marriage guidance counselling (as it was called then). It didn’t work. Within 2 years we separated and I moved out, with Bella.
I cried for months. I grieved for what should have been and I became reclusive. The only constant in my life was that four-legged bundle of unconditional love. She comforted me when she sensed the tears and guarded me, a young woman on her own in a new town.
Bella was the reason I got up every day. She was more than my pet; she was my guardian angel.
She remained by my side through the ups and downs, the divorce, and the death of a parent. We finally settled in a new and very happy home, and Bella never left my side.
She lived until she was 15, and the day she left my life was a day I’ll never forget. She lives on in my heart, and I’ll be forever grateful for finding that little pup in need of rescuing and, ultimately, being the one that rescued me.
VC, 63, Surrey UK
