It was crappy. No doubt about that. But I'm lucky, I know, because though I can't help questioning if my dad loves his dog more than his own daughter, at least I still have him around. Even though I can't talk to him now any more than I can talk to mom.

"That sounds absolutely terrible," I tell Thomas. The more I hear about where he came from, the more I'm glad he's here now. "Was like a pandemic? You didn't get sick?"