Tessa-Bear

I remember a line in Forrest Gump that goes something like: "Dying is just a part of living.  I sure wish it wasn't".  Challenges and losses are important parts of our journey.  Sometimes we forget to be thankful for the setbacks.

Its a hard concept to come to terms with...we should be thankful for our losses.  Why should we be thankful for losses that cause us pain?

This is my friend Tessa (Tessa is the one on the left).  We call her Tessa-Bear because she is about as big as a young black bear.  When you first see her she can be a little intimidating. In about 30 seconds you figure out that the biggest things about her are her heart and her personality.  As was the case with her human family, we all became fast friends.  Tessa is a gentle soul who I have had the privilege of watching after, and helping to spoil, while the family is away for activities.   

Sadly, it seems that Tessa is nearing the end of her own journey.  She has become older and sicker, she has stopped eating and drinking, and is content to just make herself comfortable.  Upon knowing that she is feeling so ill, I visited with her this morning.  She was lounging in the grass.  I called to her as I walked up, but she didn't greet me as she normally would.  I knelt down in front of her and she lifted her head and flipped her tail a few times.  I asked my wife to come and visit her too.  Tessa is a wonderful old friend, and as she crosses the rainbow bridge today, we want her to know she was special to us.  

It hurts to lose Tessa.  It hurt terribly when we lost Abby.  Just as it hurts when we lose anyone or anything that we love.  It makes us question "why?".  Why do we have to experience the pain of things that go wrong, and the things that we lose?

I believe there is great purpose in our losses.  Wisdom can only be gained through experiences, and those experiences must include painful ones.  We can't learn to appreciate the loves we have without remembering the loves we've lost.  We would never recognize the wonderful gifts in our lives if everything were easy.  Without loss we cannot become stronger and more empathetic creatures ourselves. 

Our hearts will be heavy as we miss such a noble creature, but we must remember the love she so generously gave to the family, neighbors, and especially the kids who enjoyed loving her back.  We are the ones who were blessed to know her.  

Goodbye my old friend.