Another Loss

My friend Jim (yeah, we have the same first name) tells me he and his wife Ann just lost their dog Dusty. Unlike Ace, Dusty was an older dog. He had his 13th birthday earlier this year, a ripe old age for his breed. Never the less one is never ready to lose a friend. I met Dusty on several occasions when visiting Jim at his home. Dusty barked at me the first time we met but each meeting thereafter I was greeted with a wagging tail. Despite his age and difficulty walking he was a puppy at heart and aways ready to go for a walk or play.

I wish that everyone could have a good dog like Ace or Dusty at least once in life so that he or she could learn by the daily example the dog sets, what a virtue unconditional love is. In an ideal world our good dogs would last as long as we do and die with us but this is not an ideal world so we feel the loss when they depart before us. At least we have the memories of them and the blessing they were while with us.