I loved the dog so much. So, I decided that I needed to have it surgically implanted into my body. And I called the surgeon.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He was a short and astute doctor with a deep, trustworthy voice.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have too many internal organs,\u201d he told me. \u201cWe\u2019ll have to remove some in order to fit the dog in. No way the dog\u2019ll fit otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We agreed to remove all the unnecessary organs first. \u201cYou have two kidneys, two lungs, so one of each can go. I can remove one of your eyes just so you feel like you\u2019re all in.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I said take it all. The dog wasn\u2019t too big anyhow. I imagined it would fit in my rib cage with a little room left for it to waggle its tail. \u201cMake sure you leave room for it to waggle its tail,\u201d I told the surgeon.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The surgeon did not share my optimism. \u201cWe\u2019ll need to run valves through your abdomen for oxygen and sewage. The more I think about it, this is sort of like when they sent that dog to outer space,\u201d he told me. \u201cExcept in this situation the dog will most definitely die instants after the surgery is complete.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I asked him if he thought I should get the local university involved. At the time I thought this would be the kind of thing that would attract a young academic. Perhaps I was putting too much faith in the surgeon. The surgeon slept at my house that night. He said we would start in the morning.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He woke me up that night with a new plan. \u201cWe\u2019ve been thinking about this all wrong,\u201d he told me. \u201cWe have to remove all the organs, put the dog in and then figure out how to put the organs in, one by one like a puzzle. At that point we could even begin connecting the dog to your body so it could breathe with your lung and use your bladder.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I thought about it for a moment in bed. \u201cI worry we might suffocate the poor thing in the process of doing this. Plus, I believe you\u2019re implying that through this surgery I might be able to hear the dog\u2019s thoughts which was never my intention.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s impossible,\u201d said the surgeon. \u201cI\u2019m only trying to fulfill your vision within the limits of my understanding of human anatomy.\u201d The project was clearly wearing on him, though he seemed to be more saddened than upset. In the darkness he looked like a pale, bitter shadow.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll go get the dog,\u201d I said. \u201cThe dog is the whole reason we\u2019re doing this. Let me just put on my slippers.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The surgeon sat on my bed. Thoughts flew through him the way that I\u2019ve always imagined a computer thinking. A ticker tape of ideas fell from his mouth. \u201cWe could remove all your intestines except what\u2019s absolutely essential. We could halve the size of your stomach, bladder, lung, and cut out all but a thumbnail-sized section of your liver. I\u2019ve heard of people living with less. Imagine being able to live on an organ no bigger than the hard nail on your thumb,\u201d said the surgeon.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I looked at my own finger. \u201cThe human body is a marvelous invention,\u201d I told him.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The doctor came back to his senses after a glass of water. He played with the dog a while. \u201cThis is really a great dog,\u201d he told me.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I said it was the whole reason for the project. I told him I was putting my body on the line.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The next morning, he cut me open in my living room. This is the only part I was unconscious for, so I only know what he told me.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I decided that I needed to have it surgically implanted into my body.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5004,"template":"","categories":[9,48,49],"tags":[6,1389,1390],"class_list":["post-5002","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aquifer","category-fiction","category-literary-features","tag-aquifer-the-florida-review-online","tag-i-loved-the-dog-so-much","tag-roger-duran"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n