Saturday, January 8, 2011

Farewell to a Four-Legged Friend

It's been exactly a month since I posted. No excuses. I've been "uninspired" for lack of a better word.


We lost a four-legged family member today. I can barely bring myself to type that our daughter Jackie's cocker spaniel, Bella, had to be helped to go to doggie heaven this morning. She brought so much joy to their life (and ours) and will be sorely missed. We were her dog-sitters whenever Jackie and Neal went on vacation and we just returned her to them after a five-day visit with us last week. She wasn't her usual "self" and wasn't eating very well. This photo was taken a week ago today on our couch.Searching for consoling words for Jackie and Neal and the children, I came across a Rudyard Kipling poem that is also a prayer:
A Dog for Jesus
(Where dogs go when they die)

I wish someone had given Jesus a dog.
As loyal and loving as mine.
To sleep by His manger and gaze in His eyes
And adore Him for being divine.

As our Lord grew to manhood His faithful dog,
Would have followed Him all through the day.
While He preached to the crowds and made the sick well
And knelt in the garden to pray.

It is sad to remember that Christ went away.
To face death alone and apart.
With no tender dog following close behind,
To comfort its Master's Heart.

And when Jesus rose on that Easter morn,
How happy He would have been,
As His dog kissed His hand and barked it's delight,
For The One who died for all men.

Well, the Lord has a dog now, I just sent Him mine,
The old pal so dear to me.
And I smile through my tears on this first day alone,
Knowing they're in eternity.

Day after day, the whole day through,
Wherever my road inclined,
Four feet said, "Wait, I'm coming with you!"
And trotted along behind.

Rudyard Kipling

I'll get back to "surviving retirement" with my next post. We, both of us, are embarking on a new eating plan for this new year. Perhaps sharing our successes (or failures) will keep us on track. Too many cruises and too many pounds since retirement. Being home all day every day with that large appliance in the kitchen with the light that goes on when you open the door has taken its toll, especially on me. I have a magnet that reads: "Thou Shalt Not Weigh More Than Thy Refrigerator". I laughed when I bought it, now....it's not so funny! I've ordered a book called "Cinch: Conquer Cravings, Drop Pounds, and Lose Inches." Promises include: lose up to 8 lbs. in 5 days with the quick detox portion of this 30-day program that REQUIRES you to eat dark chocolate every day. (OK, yes, that's the part that got me when I saw it on Raechel Ray.)

Happy 2011 Everyone....and please keep Jackie and her family in your prayers as they face the days ahead without the "tap tap" of doggie paws following them down the hallways.