introducing harl’s house

one rainy june evening in 2019 i met with a realtor in a cozy coffee shop in a neighbourhood i was obsessed with.

i had decided that it was finally time to stop moving around – to put down roots & buy a house.

harley’s house.

that’s the name my mama & i had been calling my future home, even before i had any idea of what i wanted or where i wanted to be.

for over a decade, Harley had been my constant companion. that sweet bully baby moved coast to coast with me.

apartments, condos, hotels, big three bedroom houses & tiny cramped basement suites.

sixteen homes in total & she was always such a good girl. never destroyed anything or acted out. never barked her head off, annoying our many neighbours.

she was a perfect baby & all i wanted to give her was a big backyard of her own that we didn’t leave after six months. something permanent. for both of us.

and that’s the only direction i gave my realtor – i want this certain neighbourhood, with a big backyard for the dog.

well two weeks into our search, Harley was diagnosed with cancer.

as mama drove me home from the vet, i held her collar to my chest, crying over the fact that i never got her the house that she so deserved.

even right now it weighs heavy on my heart that i couldn’t give that to her. she gave me everything & i wanted to do the same for her.

now, just over a year later, i’ve officially moved into my very first house i’ve bought all by myself.

the first thing i did when i got the keys was walk into the backyard & cry.

i wish she was here to see this.

but there are already pictures of her up everywhere & she has a special spot in the living room where she’s watching over me & Poppy – the bully mix i rescued last fall.

and that’s what harl’s house has become… a sanctuary where i can rescue & adopt other bully breed dogs in her honour & in her memory.

a place where i can continue to write afternoons with harley.

a home where i can celebrate how far i’ve come & work towards everything i want in the future.

so today, i’m raising a glass & welcoming you to harl’s house.    

xxoo, k