Molly and Treffie
Molly lived in a two-story brick house with her parents, William and Katherine Coyne, her older brothers Bill and Dick, and at various times, her grandmother and aunts and uncles galore on a pretty street in Germantown, Philadelphia. During tough times, families pull together and often open their hearts and homes to help each other out. And so Molly lives in a house full of people whom she loves.
In fact, Molly shares her room with her Aunt Peggy, a secretary by day and a theater actress by night. Aunt Peggy was a wonderful room mate and quite glamorous, Molly thought. Aunt Peggy doted on Molly, taking her shopping to buy pretty dresses and curling her hair.
But in spite of all the aunts, uncles, cousins and friends coming and going, there were never, ever any pets in the house. She had heard stories of a wolf that her father had when he was a young man, and her uncle Tom loved to ride horses and had several in his stable, but never a pet at 254 West Abbotsford Avenue.
How she longed for a dog — a companion of her very own. But her mother insisted that there were too many mouths to feed already in the house and chores to be done. It was impossible to add an animal into the mix. And so Molly did without and played with her friends’ dogs instead. But secretly she wished for a dog of her very own and her father knew it.
Every afternoon, Pop Pop would come home from work, very dirty and tired from his job. He was an expert in slate roofs and builders throughout Philadelphia relied on him to construct or repair buildings of great importance. Pop always had the same routine. He would wash his hands and face in the outside kitchen and sit and take off his work boots and place them by the door for the next day’s work.
Only today was different. Pop pop was carrying his work boots down to the basement — he needed to repair the heel. It was loose, he said. But that wasn’t exactly the truth. You see hidden in one of his boots was a little puppy. Pop Pop had brought a scottish terrier puppy home for Molly. And he knew, once a puppy was settled in the house and of little consequence to the household, that Nana would relent.
The next evening, after dinner, the family was gathered in the living room to listen to the Sunday radio shows — Molly loved Abbott and Costello, Rin Tin Tin, Amos ‘n’ Andy, and the Bing Crosby Show. And so the family was gathered on this fall evening with a fire crackling in the fireplace, the windows open slightly for a cool breeze, with Pop Pop smoking his pipe and Nana mending socks. Molly sat on the floor, leaning against her Uncle Joe’s knee and Bill and Dick were finishing up dishes in the kitchen.
Pop Pop excused himself and disappeared into the basement. When he returned, he held Treffie in his hand, close to his chest. Upon entering the living room, everyone turned to see Treffie’s ears perked up and his pink tongue anxiously licking his nose. It was as if Treffie knew he was there on approval. Molly squealed with delight and Nana scowled at Pop Pop. Bill and Dick came running out of the kitchen to see what all the commotion was about.
There on the couch, sitting next to Nana was Molly holding Treffie who was looking up at Nana as if to say, “won’t you please keep me?” Treffie was so tiny and so adorable, he melted the heart of his toughest critic. Nana’s face broke into a smile, her lips puckered as she leaned into Treffie to give him a kiss. And so Treffie became a member of the household and Molly’s constant companion.
