OMG! Just when I think it is going to be a quiet Christmas Eve, havoc takes over. I was going out the back door when I see this basset hound running across the back yard with a young man in hot pursuit of him. There is a elderly lady right behind him. Of course it is muddy back there because of all the rain we have and both the dog and the guy are covered with mud. The dog just manages to stay out of this guy's reach. I get Ashton to go get some animal crackers so that we can try to get our hands on the dog. I guess the dog is getting very tired because he finally lets the young man catch him. Both the dog and the boy are exhausted. It seem that this elderly lady had been chancing the dog for about 2 miles and this kind young man stopped to help her. When I get to the lady she is exhausted and very emotional. It seems that her granddaughter is visiting from Amarillo and this is her dog. The lady, Mrs. Merritt, was left in the care of this dog and it managed to get out of her yard. Mrs. Merritt told me that her son had died 2 years ago today and the dog belonged to his daughter. She was so very greatful for the kindness of strangers. There was also a young lady out there who took Mrs. Merritt, the basset hound, and the young man back to Mrs. Merritt's house. Mrs. Merritt was insisting that she was going to give the young man monetary reward but he said it was not necessary. I guess they will work that out later. I was very worried about Mrs. Merritt. I was afraid she was going to have a heart attack. I might try to drive over to her house later and check on her. You know about the time you want to lose faith in mankind, something happens to reknew you faith in people. Hope yall have a quite and safe Christmas Eve. Old Machala Farm