Dear Naomi,

You finally got a chance to meet your Great Uncle Toshka. Toshka, or Tosh as we often refer to him, is a staple of loyalty and love in the family. He's now in the winter of his years, but has lived seasons full of life. Toshka is the first family dog. Long before Olive or Qtip ever came along. Even though those three have spent a little bit of time together on occasional visits, none of Tosh's wise temperment ever rubbed off on them. But that's okay. Every dog is different and we love Olive and Q for all their little quirks. Afterall, Tosh is one of a kind. Regal, loyal, handsome, strong.

He was a natural with you. Patient, curious, gentle. I could tell that he would look after you and keep you safe. He comes from a breed that was used to watch over children, so it's no surprise how his mannerisms were with you. We hope for you to see him more often. Perhaps as you get older and more capable, you may even get to hold the leash on a walk with the old boy. For your mom and I, having these pictures of us together is such a sentimental thing. You see, Tosh is not just a pet to us, he's a symbol of the family. I have so many memories of visits to Tilden park where we would hike through the hills, occasional visits to Ocean beach, and of course the countless times we enjoyed walks over looking the Bay. Although you were sleeping in your stroller, you had a chance to experience this for the first time as well.

On the day that we first saw Tosh, we visited him and his siblings at his owners home not far from your Grandparents house. We were there to pick out a little puppy as a gift for Nadia - which of course was a gift for all of us. We had a hard time deciding and needed to think more about the decision, but as we were leaving the house, Tosh (then a nameless cute little pup), came running out after us through the front door as we walked towards the car. That pretty much sealed the deal for us and the rest is now history. As I look back at all the days past, I can't help but think how much better our lives have been with him in them. It's easy to say that he needed a home, that he needed us. I much more like to say that we needed him, and he helped make our home.

love,

Papa