Originally posted on Facebook HERE
We have no control over time. Time is relentless, and it will kill us all. Everyone we know will die. Every living thing in our lives will die. We’ll all die. Every day we’re one step closer to death. The older you get, the more that shadow looms over you. How much time do I have left? Nobody knows. One of the most painful things to go through in life is the loss of a loved one. Almost every day I see a friend who has lost a pet on my social media feed. Losing a companion animal is extremely brutal. I’ve seen way too many in the last couple weeks. And as I look at all the awesome photos and feel all the love that accompanies those posts, I know the horrible feeling that comes with the loss of a pet all too well. It’s awful. When you get a pet you know that in most cases you have a ten to twenty year window there. I was looking at a post the other day that totally broke my heart, and reminded me of all the great dogs I’ve had to say goodbye to in my life. Duffy was the first. Maybe the only time I ever remember seeing my father cry was when we had to put him down. The Snoopy, dad couldn’t even go with me that time. Clyde. Muggsy. Fang. Bones. Cosmo. I loved them all. I remember every ending with great sorrow and pain. Cosmo, the most recent, is foremost in my memory. What a great guy. And when that time comes, as a pet owner, there can be some soul searching and second guessing about how to handle it. Should I put him/her down? Should I be there? We weren’t there for Duffy and Snoopy. I’m not very proud of that. Really pains me that we weren’t in the room with them when they were put down. Clyde died accidentally when he pulled a lamp cord out of the wall and electrocuted himself. God, that was terrible. On my 21st birthday, too. Muggsy… my father passed away when we had Muggsy. I was on the road playing with my band at the time. Mom said Muggsy just never got over losing him, and she had him put down while I was out of town. For every animal that has ever been in my life I have these terrible memories of what the end was like. I was there for Fang, Bones and Cosmo. This whole post so far just makes me so sad. And I know my time with Gizmo is numbered. My own time is numbered. So, is it worth it? Is all that anguish worth it? The anguish comes because when we lose a pet we know the soul we’ve come to know, that touched our hearts the way only companion animals can, is gone forever. And what are we left with? Years of fantastic memories. All that unconditional love we received. And a hole in our hearts that can never be filled. But a strange thing happens. The house is too quiet. And there are so many animals that need a loving home. So we do it again. Because this is life, right? You love every moment with all your heart because that’s all we can do. Better to have loved and lost then never loved at all. Every pet I’ve ever had has made the world better just by their presence. They are our teachers. If we all just focused on loving each other unconditionally, napping frequently, walking every day, playing whenever possible… well, what a great world we’d have. So grab your heart today, hug everyone you can, and let love guide you every moment, every day. Because time is out there watching and waiting… let’s leave the world better for us having been in it.
