Sad Day

Today is a sad day.  My brother and sister-n-law's 6-year-old Boxer Sammy (short for Sampson) lost his battle with cancer.  That is sad enough.  What makes it worse is that they didn't get to say goodbye to him.

I did get to say goodbye to my furry pal (aka child) 11 years ago and it was horrible enough.  He was 12.5 years old and had lived a long, full life.  Sammy was young.

But a couple things I'm reminded of today.  First, in some ways, I need to live my life like Sammy did.  Love life.  Love people.  Forgive fast.  Play whenever possible.  Love hard.

Second, I need to remember that a dog's unconditional love is a reminder of how God loves me.  He doesn't mind when I'm in a bad mood.  He doesn't seem to notice when I don't look my best.  Whether it's been 5 minutes, 5 hours, 5 days or 5 months, He's just as happy to see me.  He gazes at me with eyes of love and devotion.  He loves me without question.  He forgives me completely.  He wants nothing else than to be with me and love me.

Thanks for loving my family, Sammy.  You were such a good buddy.  You've been so brave these past few months fighting hard against the cancer.  I'm glad you're no longer feeling bad.  I hope they have plenty of string balls in doggie heaven!