9/11 and a dog named Pistol

  Pistol Pete was a rescued racer I was keeping when 9/11 happened.  Pistol, aka Pistoli, was a big, not very attractive, goofy, black greyhound.  He was the most happy, animated, funny greyhound of the 30 plus greyhounds I had rescued.  Usually they were very quiet, depressed, and very blank until they started feeling better.  Pistol had a really long face and was a little scraggle toothed.  He was older and a little gray.  He would get very excited and tuck his tail under his bottom and twirl like a top.  Then he would take off like a rocket.  He adjusted my shoulder several times.  Pistol came from a man that raced greyhounds.  He would call on his way to another race track and I would meet him at the truckstop where he would drop the dogs that were retired off. It's a long story.
   A few days after 9/11 happened I was home alone, sitting on the floor in my kitchen watching the news.  The scenes were awful.  They kept showing the planes crashing into the buildings over and over.  That morning I had stood outside and it was just eery with no planes flying over as they had all been grounded.  I felt very uneasy, anxious, sad and scared.
   At the time I was just fostering dogs as the shelter had not been built.  Pistol was curled up on the kitchen floor asleep.  I sat there thinking how could anyone be that hateful.  The longer I watched the news the worse I felt and just felt like crying.  All those people gone and how senseless it all was.  Pistol got up and walked over to me.  He stood right in front of me and was eye level with me sitting on the floor.  He looked very concerned and just stared at me.  All of a sudden he put his paw over my shoulder and put his head on my other shoulder. I just sat there and hugged that dog and cried.  Pistol knew something was very wrong.  
   I will always remember that day.  As for Pistol, I found him a very special home with people that adored him.  I'm sure he is gone now as he was an old man 10 years ago. As the 10 year anniversary of 9/11 rolls by I feel the same uneasy feeling I did 10 years ago.  But I also remember that hug I got from a big, goofy greyhound.