This is a shot taken around midnight in my garden, with the camera pointed at the back door. What you might not notice is the shadowy figure in the lower right: Misty, my 9 year old Rottweiler-mix rescue doggie. Misty and her sister Molly are in many of my pictures. Sometimes they ham it up for the camera. Sometimes they acquiesce to my silly need to photograph them in all matter of undignified positions -- belly up napping or wearing one of my daughter's doll hats. Sometimes they sneak into a shot, invariably making it better.
Dogs do that to you. They sneak up on your life and invariably make it better.
My sister Judy lost her beloved dog Summer yesterday. Dog lovers know there are no words to adequately express sympathy for the loss of a furry best friend. When Elizabeth Barrett Browning lost her own dog, she wrote a line that has always summed it up for me:
"His ears were often the first thing to catch my tears."
Why do pets live so few years and how can they manage to pack so much love and joy into such a short period of time? Like Judy said today, if there is a heaven, then it must be filled with dogs.
18 comments:
Beautiful image and quotation. My sympathy to Judy.
Beautifully and sadly said. The only bad thing about a dog is the lifespan. I'm sorry Judy.
I couldn't agree more. Dogs are the absolute best, and it is very hard to lose one.
One of my favorite quotes about dogs is by M. Facklam. "We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. It's the best deal man has ever made."
To quote Will Rogers, "If there are no dogs in heaven, then I want to go where they went."
You will be with Summer again, sometime, somewhere, Judy. I'm sorry to hear of your loss.
So sorry to hear about Summer. There is a reason I love dogs and put up with cats. Dogs are almost ALWAYS excited to see you, want to be with you, even if it is just in the room to make sure you're ok. Cats take a message and get back to you. Somehow, those ears catching tears, the tongue licking them up or just the snuggles they offer when that's really what you need---dogs get it.
And I agree with Will Rogers--I'm going where the dogs have passed on to, cuz without them, forever isn't worth it!
As I sit at my computer, our Daisy dog is laying in her favorite spot by the door of the room...with her head in the hallway. She's old now, and I rue the day when she makes that journey to that other world...
Judy, please know that all of our hearts are with you...
You said it Trish. And maybe my favorite dog quote is by Samuel Butler:
The greatest pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him, and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself, too.
Judy's tribute to Summer tore at my heart strings. She quoted Victor Young's lyrics from the song, "Indian Summer." Judy loves all animals, always has, always will. It truly is a shame that dogs have such a short life span. Just long enough for you to believe that you can't get along without them.
Judy, I am so sorry about the loss of Summer.
Pet Loss Bereavement is real, and there are workshops to deal with it. In LA, the next one is scheduled for Saturday, June 13th. For information contact Marian at: Hollyni@sbcglobal.net
Thanks everyone. I feel like you are my west coast family although most of you, I've never seen.
The love of a pet transcends all boundaries of the heart. Each time you choose to take in another one, you heart just gets a little bigger.
I'll miss her tailless wag. :~)
I really like your shadowy door, Laurie. Maybe that's the metaphor for the one opening in the heaven we both spoke of, to let in another beloved pet.
Oh I'm so sorry Judy. I lost my Baxter almost 9 years ago and I can still squall at the drop of a hat. Thanks for those two great quotes. Our friend Snapper lost his beloved Grinder the cat this week as well. He posted a lovely photo and tribute .
Blessings J.
V
PS LA, this photo is -K- material!!! Bravo.
Thank You, humans! Unfortunately, I know the feeling.
Why do canines live so few years? Have you seen the sh..., ahem, stuff, humans feed us? Is it any wunder why I've resorted to hanging around Cafes for my meals??
Judy, I am so very sorry to know of the passing of your dog, Summer.
That was a beautiful and loving photo and poem/lyrics you sent me yesterday. It did indeed make me tearful.
If any of you have not already looked...you can see Judy's a.k.a. Jutilda's photos which Laurie has linked on the right. Many are of animals.
This is the 2nd blog in a row where I say its been 3 months since my cat Webster passed away. And that its getting to be time to call Maria the cat rescue woman who kept in touch with me for 14 years.
Thanks for all of the beautiful sentiments and great quotes, everyone. I'm so happy to be part of this amazing community.
Til tomorrow...
I'm a lot late here. My heart goes out to you, Judy. I put myself in your place and imagine how it must feel. I'm so in love with my Boz and too often I think about what it will be like to lose him. Laurie told us how much you love animals, that your heart has room for more. But I know Summer was special.
Photos have come really nice..keep going..great work..
Nice photo...wonderful thoughts....
Thanks for sharing...
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Andrew
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