I drove through a snowstorm on my birthday on November 24, 2008, to pick up my dear pup Sarah on the day she turned eight weeks old.
She was the best birthday present I ever got.
Sarah was more than a wonderful pet – she was my best friend and constant companion. She was my soul mate dog: so sweet, so funny, so beautiful. We did everything together. We loved to go on long car rides through the Pennsylvania countryside where we live. She always sat on my lap with the top down on my convertible and a warm summer breeze blowing through our hair. I would joke with my spouse that she would ride to California if we went that far. We never drove there, but we did go to the beaches of Virginia and North Carolina with her happily on my lap. She loved long walks on the beach.
Sarah and I would take walks up a large hill near our home, and on the way back, she would instinctively start running from the top of the hill all the way to the bottom. I would say to her, “Whee, run like the wind Sarah – you’re a fast girl!” Even after my beloved dog developed diabetes and lost her vision, anytime I led her up that familiar hill on her leash and we reached the summit and turned around, she would start running down the hill to the bottom.
The day she passed at age 14, I lovingly told her to “run like the wind”. I also told her she would be able to see again and would make new doggie friends and run and play in Heaven and that I would see her again one day. Oh, how I am looking forward to our reunion!
Until we meet again, I know I will never be the same. I am grateful for our time together, even though our dogs never live long enough. Dogs truly love us unconditionally and they also deeply feel our love for them as well. The bond is never broken because true love never dies.
