Gracie is a five- to six-year-old beagle/German Shepard mix. I met her at PetSmart on a Freedom Farm adoption day. Today is our one week anniversary, but it feels like we’ve been friends for a long time.

I wanted a dog for a good bit and got serious about it a month ago. Knowing I wanted to adopt, I made local inquiries through PetFinder, but nothing panned out. So I wound up at PetSmart.

The dogs were late arriving, all but this BIG beagle-looking dog, who came with her foster owner. I kept telling myself I could not adopt the first dog I saw, but I wasn’t fooling anybody; it was love at first sight. Then I heard her name: Gracie. Her name was already Gracie.

A week later, I brought Gracie home. When we got inside, she walked the house upstairs and down for a good thirty minutes. Then she jumped on my bed and fell asleep. Welcome home, Gracie.

Gracie is indifferent toward the cats. Gracie has not had one accident in the week she’s been here, despite my being away at work all day. On command, Gracie can sit, stay, shake hands, fetch, and lie down, though we’re working on tightening up these abilities. Our obedience goals are to not jump up in greeting and to not pull at the leash.

When she’s not on my bed, Gracie lounges on the parlor sofa. If I had to use one word to describe Gracie, that word would be chill. Gracie is chill.

Her chillness has increased my sense of peace.