A dog in the house, a white dog in Georgia with its red clay, a female dog…these are the things you taught me to love, Sissy. Thank you for every time you charged the door, fearless of what threats lay on the other side. Every time I pick up our shotgun, I wish I could hear your feet clicking across the floor, ears up, and tail whipping. I wish we could run the squirrels out of the yard again. I wish we could go for a run on the old trail together. But we still do, in my heart, Sissy. I can see you charging through the gates of Heaven, where Deddy waits for you by his lakeshore. Keep running, Boo-Hoo, I won’t call you back anymore.”