May 30 1988 —- Feb. 10 2000
Dog
My best friend died yesterday and my heart is broken.
You would have liked my friend. He was such a gentle soul
who always thought of others before he did himself.
His life was exemplary of the words in the book of Corinthians;
his love for people was patient and kind he did not envy or boast,
nor was he proud or rude and I never saw him angry with anyone.
However the thing that fascinated me the most about him was that
he never wavered in his love for me. I have never known anyone quite
like him and his passing has left a deep hole in my heart.
I first met my friend almost twelve years ago. His entrance into the
world began on a hot humid Memorial Day in 1988 when the piercing
sounds of his mother’s cries rang throughout the neighborhood.
My husband and I ran immediately towards the cries and it was there
that we saw him for the first time. He lay limp and wet upon the ground.
His body was covered with a fine white milky coat as he snuggled close
to his mother’s side. His eyes were closed and peaceful as they
are today when I say good-bye to him for the last time.
Seven weeks after his birth my best friend left his birth mother to
come and live with my family and I.
He captured our hearts from the beginning. My husband would play
endlessly with him on the bed and the floor during the day and at night,
I would wrap him gently in a blanket sing to him and rock him to sleep.
He would set for hours sometimes just staring at both of us
with his big brown trusting eyes. I did not have to wonder what
was going through his mind. I always knew.
He understood that he was in a home that would love and care for him;
a home that would provide for his needs a place where his own unique,
unconditional type of love was appreciated and cherished.
The weeks turned into months and the months into years and the bond
between my friend and I grew with the passing of time.
He and I trusted each other. An example of that trust was when I would
leave him alone with reassuring words that I would always return and I did.
In the same token he assured me that he would always be there
waiting for me and he was. He never seemed to have any conception
of time; he was as happy to see me when I was gone for ten
minutes as he was when I was gone for two days.
Throughout his short life many things that my friend did amazed me.
However the one thing that stands out in my mind was his passionate
desire to be near me. Time and place were of little concern to him however
my presence was. I cannot begin to count the times within a given
day that he would get himself comfortable while sitting close by me only
to have me get up and move. When that happened he never seemed to
mind he just got and moved with me. If I went into another room
he followed close behind. If he was asleep and I moved any distance from
him it was though an alarm sounded in his mind; his eyes would open
his head would rise and his body would take flight after me.
Unlike any other friend that I have had in my life my best friend taught
me things that I had never before experienced in a friendship.
He taught me to trust. His unequaled loyalty proved to me repeatedly
that he would never turn against me no matter what I did or said.
He taught me the art of patience by his willingness to wait on those
things that brought him happiness while I pursued those things that
brought me mine. Above all else he never lied to me about his love.
Lying was an option he never considered as our friendship was a
friendship devoid of any complications such as gain jealousy or deceit.
It was a friendship built on the foundation of pure and simple love and trust.
As the years passed I noticed my best friend growing old before
my eyes. His hair turned white and his back began to slump.
His legs no longer had the same strength as they once did nor did he
have the energy to get up and follow me. This did not stop him
however from watching my every move from a distance.
To him my very presence was a paramount factor in his life.
I would often sit beside him in the evenings and gently message his
crippled arthritic legs and place warm compresses across his back to
ease his pain. During these times he never failed to glance up at me
with eyes filled with love devotion and appreciation that was
uniquely his own.
His body had long since lost its sparkle but his eyes never did.
Saying good-bye has never been easy for me. It has always represented
the closing of a door that will never be opened again.
Today I will say good-bye to my best friend. I will wrap his body in a soft
blanket to warm him against the cold of wintry nights and gently lay
him in his eternal bed. I will place close by his body something that
belonged to me so that he can take a part of me with him on his
journey knowing that I will always be nearby.
How very fortunate I feel to have known him. How very rich my life has
been because he was my friend. However there is a difference in
this good-bye from others I have experienced.
This time the door will not remained closed because this door is
to my heart and it is my best friend who holds the key.
Betty
| Bear Jay |