my heart aches.

my longtime friend susan and her family
had to say goodbye to their beloved chocolate lab
coach on friday.
she called to see if i wanted to come say goodbye on
thursday night.
it broke my heart.
we were buds.
i would take care of him when they went out of town.
i loved that goofball like he was one of my own.
he knew i would always bring him treats everyday.
he knew he had to "give me ten" to get them.
taking coach on a walk was like walking a cross between a
greyhound and a bucking bronco.

my heart aches for them.
i know they miss him.
i do too.
when we lost our molly, some friends sent us a little story about
why dogs are only here for such a short time.
i choose to believe it.

a dog's purpose

(from a 6 yr old)

being a veterinarian, i had been called to examine a ten yr old

irish wolfhound named belker.

the dog's owner, wife and their 6 yr old son were

all very attached to belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.

i examined belker and found he was dying of cancer.

i told the family we couldn't do anything for belker, and offered

to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.

as we made arrangements, the husband and wife thought it

would be good for their son to observe the procedure.

they felt as though he might learn something

from the experience.

the next day, i felt the familiar catch in my throat as

belker's family surrounded him.

the 6 yr old seemed to be calm, petting the old dog

for the last time, that i wondered if he understood what 

was going on.

within a few minutes, belker slipped peacefully away.

the little boy seemed to accept belker's transition without

any difficulty or confusion.  we sat together for a while after

belker's death wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal

lives are shorter than human lives.  the little boy who 

had been listening quietly, piped up, "i know why."

startled, we all turned to him. what came out of his

mouth stunned me. i had never heard a more comforting

explanation.

he said, "people are born so that they can learn

how to live a good life...like loving everybody all the

time and being nice, right?'  the little boy

continued, "well, dogs already know how to do that,

so they don't have to stay as long."  

live simply.

love generously.

care deeply.

speak kindly.

rest in peace, sweet coach.