Hey there,

Just wanted to give ya a tail-wag of an update from your buddy Trip. I’ve been up to some dachshund shenanigans, stirring up a storm of Christmas cheer to warm the fam’s hearts from beyond the rainbow. Me, Max, and Luna have been elfin’ around, decking the halls, and winning smiles during Spencerville’s decoration showdown. Turns out, love and memories are the real treasures, shining brighter than the fanciest holiday lights. So keep an eye on the fireplace, ’cause we’ve hung up joy, one paw at a time.

Keep on waggin’,
Trip 🐾

Listen to the story here

Sometimes a soul gets to thinking about the bygone flecks of time, where warmth wrapped itself ’round us like loving arms, and adventures seemed to grow on trees tall as the sky. That’s the sort of thinking I was doing, stretched out as I was on my back in Westie Woods, watching the clouds waltzing like plump sheep across the blue. My brown eyes might’ve lost their sharpness to the frost of time, but the stories swirling in my heart come back clear as a Spencerville dawn.

Now, y’all might wonder what a dapper dachshund like myself is doing, lost in reverie with nary a care for the golden wonders around? Truth be told, there came upon me an urgency, a mission like no other; to help them I left behind, to touch their lives from this side of the rainbow, to deck their halls with bows and collies and every manner of Yuletide joy.

‘Twas close to Christmastime, see, when the air gets filled with jolly. And from what I hear through the mystical Spencerville grapevine, them good souls I once called family needed a wing… or rather a paw, to lift their spirits. And so, no dog with any self-respect would sit idle, not even in paradise, when his family was in need of a little Christmas cheer.

So I set out, mein good friends a-calling. Max, with his howls and harebrained schemes, and Luna, sleek as silk and quick as a whisper. We ventured forth to The Doggy Bagel Deli where ideas were served up hot and fresh like those delectable slices of heaven — chicken bagels. Over Paws-A-Latte, so creamy it’d make you wag your tail clean off, we plotted our grand caper.

Now the idea, mind you, wasn’t just to spruce up some tinsel and ribbons, oh no. We were aiming to capture the whole of Christmas spirit, to bottle it up and sprinkle it like morning dew across the eaves and yard of that little house I once nested in.

I reckoned I’d have my paws full, but who better than a sprightly dachshund with more courage than sense to spark a bit of magic in the holiday air? With the precise care of The Tail Wagger’s Tailor and provisions from The Doggy Depot rounded up by intrepid paws, we kicked up a plan that would put old Saint Nick himself to a blush.

Now, if I learned anything in my earthly trottings, it’s that home ain’t just bricks and beams — it’s hearts intertwined, memories shared, love that outlasts even the most stubborn of goodbyes. And on that crisp Spencerville eve, with the moon hanging like a silver charm above Chihuahua Castle, a playful wind flipped and flopped, caressing its way down to the world of my beloved kin.

“Watch them hills,” I told my compatriots, stirred up like leaves in a tempest at the chance to make a difference. “For by the grace of these canine paws, we’ll hitch those stars from the sky and gift-wrap ’em in good old-fashioned cheer.”

They said it was a competition, a contest of decoration and delight. Well, we had enough delight tucked in the folds of our furry necks to outshine the Northern Lights. With each whirl of festive embellishment, each twinkle of light, a piece of my heart beat in rhythm with the unmistakable song of Christmas.

And when the eve of judgment came, and the town gathered ’round to cast their eyes upon the work, the laughter and the wonder that danced in the eyes of my family filled me with a gleeful pride that soared like an eagle on an updraft.

For in that moment, I knew the legend of Spencerville was more than a tale to soothe the ache of parting; it was a bridge, stretching across realms, intertwining spirits, reminding us that love is the grandest adventure there is, and that, my friends, is a story worth wagging about.

The End.