Lordy Lordy, Chicka dee dee dee you brought a tear to my eyes too. Our little dog is 18 years old, losing her sight and quite deaf. But she keeps on going, with a little help from us, when she cannot make it up on the setee or the patio deck stairs, on her own steam. The though of not having her around is hard to deal with for sure. But it seems to be coming closer all the time. "Horton"

I'm sorry for the loss of your friend, Auntjen. The way she died sounds so sad. The ray of light in all this sadness is how you have celebrated her life by sharing some of her charm, sweetness and good nature with us. We can feel her presence even in her absence, because of you. We can in a small way, all celebrate her life by reflecting on your story of her. Your post honors and thanks her for touching you so deeply through her communications and loving spirit. Shortly after a friend of mine died many years ago, I felt a compelling urge to get back into doing volunteer work. My friend had been an amazing social worker, and I was overcome with a desire to emulate her in some way, to extend some of the goodness she had offered to others. I know I haven't come close to giving what she gave to others, but the impulse to give back, indeed a compulsion to, was born from her death. Maybe sometimes fighting for a cause or embodying the values and concerns of a person who has died can help us to cope with their loss.

Don't know if I can be much help but I lost my very special husband in 1985. Kissed me goodbye & went to work, I found myself at a hospital that afternoon, waiting only to finally have someone come in & say, I'm sorry, do you have a mortician(at least that is all I heard)So my trip has been long,24 years. He had a coronary & died instantly. We had 15 yr old DD & 17 yr DS.It was like being put on a stage & handed a script & told you had to play the part. Nothing was real until after everyone left. I had visited a lot of elderly people from church & knew what happened to some of them. They very nearly "crawled in a hole"(under the cover in bed) 1 lady had newspapers all over the yard, shades or curtains drawn, didn't look like anyone home, we had turned to leave when she opened the door. She told me that was the 1st connection to the world she had found since her hubby had died, our visit gave her courage to get out. I remembered that & told myself, what if he were sitting here, would he want to see me crying, would he be torn apart to see me like this, so I just put him in the picture when the going got rough. He was always supportive & loving, we didn't fight in the 22 years we were together because we didn't want to hurt each other. We did have I think 6 times we were silent when each of us thought we were right. Those few times ended with us talking it over & deciding together what to do. I did lot of locking myself out of house(carried extra car & house keys in my purse) ran washer without any clothes in it, couldn't spell 4-5 letter words, couldn't look them up as "when" didn't seem to compute in my brain. I'd write woo, woen,just couldn't write small words. Eventually that stopped but it will start up again for short periods when someone close dies. I carry extra $20 in case I forget gas in my car. I learned to do a lot of compensating. I learned that I could stay in bed 1 day if it was rainy or very cold but then I must get up & fix myself some hot choc., read a book, listen to favorite music, couldn't let it continue into the night. I had to have very good reason for that day off. Rest of time when I wanted to "disappear" I forced myself out to a strip mall to watch people leaving the grocery store, did small errand to get it done & not feel useless, maybe just dropping letters off at post office. If things got bad I called my bro. & he listened & that was a great help. I had people wanting me to pay for headstones when I hadn't ordered 1. I got cheated by ins. company as they didn't leave me amount on their letterhead so I wrote it down & had him sign it but they told me I was wrong,lost about $500 on that. Got so I only cried when something good happened. So have a trusted friend or relative as a witness to anything legal you have to do. Time passed & I kept busy. People think widows have all kinds of time!! Right, I had to do all things I always had & what he did also. Putting gas in car was very upsetting, I had never done it. I had handled the bills & such so didn't have to learn that. My kids left home & after a few years, with some wandering & number of jobs, they are great kids(they felt pretty lost, too)Am I over it after 24 yrs??? No, most days I just think of him several times, lovely memories, but seeing a couple holding hands, leaning on each other, I feel cheated out of that. I'm very grateful we had 24 wonderful years together & hope someday to see him waiting for me.Good Luck folks, the pain & rawness does get better & the memories are sweet & worth holding on to & will get you through.

I just found this thread again. Reminded of the pain of losing our sweet Libby, we found ourselves having to say goodbye to another beloved pet just last week. Our precious Boo Boo Kitty made her way to Rainbow Bridge following a year of unexplained weight loss and finally a rare cancer diagnosis 6 months ago. She was a rescue kitty we welcomed to our home in the Fall of 1993. We don't know exactly how old she was when we got her but at least 6 months at the time. She must have been getting close to 17 years old when she passed. We love all our pets and they are each unique in personality and demeanor, but Boo was such a bright, intuitive, affectionate and totally mischievous little soul that there will never be another like her. Always demanding the center of attention, but in such an adorable fashion that no one could deny her. She was the best companion of my husband, who historically was never a pet lover. Yet his heart was won over within the first moments of her arrival to our home, when Boo immediately crawled onto his big chest, wrapped her paws around his neck and began purring her acceptance of her new family. From that moment they were inseparable and shared a lifelong bond of love and affection, mixed with mutual joy as they practiced the art of "play battle". Boo hiding and pouncing on my husband from all possible angles of attack until he would pin her in his arms, smothering her with hugs. As her battle with cancer caused her body to thin, tire more easily and struggle to control normal functions, she still remained our loving, affectionate, ever present companion who continued to insist on being the focus of our attention. She spent long evenings cuddled in our laps, telling us it was ok to just sit and enjoy our time together, the chores and schedules could wait...our time together was limited and thus more precious. We are so grateful to have had the honor and blessing of sharing our lives with our beautiful Boo. The pain of parting is so sharp and intense, we continue to see her in our minds eye around every corner, in her favorite sunny spots and waking us in the mornings with her soft paws upon our cheeks. As much as it hurts now, the years of shared love and memories make it all worthwhile. Someday we will cross that Rainbow Bridge, warmly greeted and surrounded by our precious companions who wait for us there now. Some pics of our little Boo Boo Kitty: Her gorgeous eyes Precious Boo Sleeping Boo Curious Boo Lazy Boo Her Highness Boo