I have loved dogs since I was very young boy and a little poodle mix followed by brother home. We named him "Yogi" (the dog not my brother) and he filled our home with love for just about 11 years. One evening we found him lifeless, out in the yard. We speculated he'd had a stroke. I was crushed.
I've reprised that loss four more times--Alphie age 8, Max age 13, Barely age 14 and Kate age 15. Each time they pass into my memory--I'm crushed, again. Yet once I move through my grief, I can't resist the compulsion to find our next dog companion and start the cycle again. My lovely Lab Lily sits with her chin wresting on the top of my feet as I type these words. Chance, our dashing Dachshund, is rattling (his tags drag on the laminate floors) round the kitchen.
So somewhere down the line I have a least two more gut-wrenching "letting-go" passages to make. I have a friend who just today put her lovely dog, Karma, down. Karma was loosing her battle with cancer and it was time for my friend to let her best K9 friend go. Why do we do it? My friend posted a quote this evening on her Face Book feed. It explains why pet owners put ourselves in the way of certain heartbreak.
"There is a cycle of love and death that shapes the lives of those who choose to travel in the company of animals. It is a cycle unlike any other. To those who have never lived through its turnings or walked its rocky path, our willingness to give our hearts with full knowledge that they will be broken seems incomprehensible. Only we know how small a price we pay for what we receive; our grief, no matter how powerful it may be, is an insufficient measure of the joy we have been given."
That's it! Look at that, "...our grief, no matter how powerful it may be, is an insufficient measure of the joy we have been given." My life has been better because of my love for my dogs, and most especially, FROM my dogs.
So, tonight I celebrate a lovely dog named Karma, her big empathic eyes and lovely brindle coat are a magnificent memory now. She "got" my friend, she loved my friend; she trusted my friend. A wonderful tribute to the connection they shared for 8 years. Yes, dogs make life better...and parting? Parting is surely sweet-sorrow.
I've reprised that loss four more times--Alphie age 8, Max age 13, Barely age 14 and Kate age 15. Each time they pass into my memory--I'm crushed, again. Yet once I move through my grief, I can't resist the compulsion to find our next dog companion and start the cycle again. My lovely Lab Lily sits with her chin wresting on the top of my feet as I type these words. Chance, our dashing Dachshund, is rattling (his tags drag on the laminate floors) round the kitchen.So somewhere down the line I have a least two more gut-wrenching "letting-go" passages to make. I have a friend who just today put her lovely dog, Karma, down. Karma was loosing her battle with cancer and it was time for my friend to let her best K9 friend go. Why do we do it? My friend posted a quote this evening on her Face Book feed. It explains why pet owners put ourselves in the way of certain heartbreak.
"There is a cycle of love and death that shapes the lives of those who choose to travel in the company of animals. It is a cycle unlike any other. To those who have never lived through its turnings or walked its rocky path, our willingness to give our hearts with full knowledge that they will be broken seems incomprehensible. Only we know how small a price we pay for what we receive; our grief, no matter how powerful it may be, is an insufficient measure of the joy we have been given."
Suzanne Clothier
That's it! Look at that, "...our grief, no matter how powerful it may be, is an insufficient measure of the joy we have been given." My life has been better because of my love for my dogs, and most especially, FROM my dogs.
So, tonight I celebrate a lovely dog named Karma, her big empathic eyes and lovely brindle coat are a magnificent memory now. She "got" my friend, she loved my friend; she trusted my friend. A wonderful tribute to the connection they shared for 8 years. Yes, dogs make life better...and parting? Parting is surely sweet-sorrow.
2 comments:
Thanks Ben..... I had to put down Zoe today. She was my 12 year old white shepherd.
...needed to hear those words
David Trecek
Holding you in our hearts David.
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