Thursday, March 24, 2011

Thanful Thursday: In memory of Sage

Thankful Thursday is our weekly meme focused on finding things to be thankful for in our everyday life - and sharing with our Oasis community!

We invite you to participate on your own blog and share the link in the comments below - or just give us your answer here

So today’s post had to be the hardest I’ve ever had to write.  Reason being?  Yesterday was close to one of the worst days of my life and I was finding it hard to be thankful for anything.  My beautiful black Labrador, Sage, was hit by a hit-and-run driver.  We thought she’d only broken her leg and took her directly to the vet.  Only to find out she’d broken a vertebra in her neck, her right shoulder and her left leg in three different spots.

Not so bad, you say.  Well, on top of that, my darling dog suffered from a skin condition every spring that countless trips to the vet and to specialists couldn’t cure.  It caused her to itch all the time and made her skin turn black and her hair to fall out on her bottom.  Because of this, they couldn’t do surgery.  The surgery itself would kill her.  And if we’d waited until the skin condition cleared (6-8 weeks) she could have died.  The vet told me the most humane thing to do for her, was to let her go.  And, after careful deliberation, I agreed with her.  She was put to sleep at 10:30 in the morning, just hours after the accident.

She was my best friend, my running buddy (when I could run), my guard dog, and my faithful companion.  She was the one I turned to when I needed to cry. I’d just bury my face in her fur and cry until I couldn’t cry anymore.  But where do you turn, when the person (because she was a person to me) you turn to always, is gone?

So, yesterday, I stared at the blank screen, with tears dribbling down my face and said, “How can I write a thankful post, when I feel anything but thankful?”

I knew I couldn’t do it.  I was too angry.  At the person who ran her over and didn’t even try to stop and see if she was hurt.  At the kids for leaving the door open.  And, most of all, myself, for not being more vigilant to realize she wasn’t in the house.

That’s when I started remembering all the things I’d done with her.  How much she loved me.  And I her.  And how just seeing her usually made everything better.  And I realized I DID have something to be grateful for. 

The years I had with her.

She was only 9, but those were awesome years and I’ll never forget them. Or her.  I’ll miss her tremendously, and I’ll never be able to pick up a Frisbee without remembering how, every morning, she’d run up to me with one in her mouth, begging me to throw it just once more (there was always just a once more.).  How she was the only one in the family who would listen to my hours of reading my stories aloud to make sure they made sense, and how she’d lick my tears away when I got to the sad parts.

These things I will cherish always and THAT is more than enough to be grateful for.

So this post is dedicated to her memory, of which I'll always be grateful.

So...what person (or animal) are you grateful to have known in your life?

14 comments:

  1. My Dog, Daisy is the greatest ever!
    After we first got her I look outside and she looks like she is biteing my one year olds legs, this one year old is crying. I go out and i am convinced I well be chucking the dog over the fence and never seeing her again, but when I get closer I see that she is actually licking and nibbling red fire ants off of my babys legs.

    Freaken most amazing dog ever!!

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  2. I'm so sorry. She was beautiful.

    I'm grateful for my mom. We almost lost her to a hit and run accident a few years ago.

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  3. I'm so sorry Jessica. My thoughts are with your family.

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  4. I am so sorry to hear about your beloved Sage. How heartbreaking... I lost a pet from an accident and the shock of something unexpected and tragic happening was overwhelming. Please know that others understand what a real, deep loss this has been. -- Janice

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  5. So sorry to hear about your sweet puppy. I went through a similar situation several years ago and it was heartbreaking. Thanks for sharing your memories with us. :)

    On a much lighter note, here's my Thankful Thursday post (with a giveaway!):
    www.amongdahlias.wordpress.com

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  6. It's hard to loose our furry loved ones. I recently (okay, so it was last July but it still feels recent) lost my black lab Graf. He was 15. So, I know what you're going through. Sorry to hear about Sage.

    So happy to hear you've found a way to remember and feel the joy she brought you.

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  7. I'm so sorry for the loss of your dog. Unfortunately I'm going through a similar issue with my cat Sadie, and she may not be long for this world. I'm thankful that there's still a small chance she could improve, and when I called my vet she said to give her a few days before we make any major decisions.

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  8. Aww, sweetie, you've got me all choked up. I'm so sorry she's gone, but I'm so grateful you had her in your life.

    As for me, I'm grateful to have known all the animals who have shared my life, but most especially my dog Pippa, who would have willingly given her life for me if she'd been asked. She was too smart for her own good, endlessly tolerant of indignity and a true beauty. She was blind and nearly deaf at the end, and I wouldn't have wished her any longer living in fear like that, but I will always miss her.

    - Liz

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  9. Jessica, I'm so sorry. I can hardly type because my eyes are so glassy. Beautiful post and tribute. ((hugs))

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  10. I'm sorry for your loss. I've never had a pet I remember, but I know one day I'll have to say goodbye to my beagle, Eli. This is hard to admit, being that I haven't adopted him yet.

    Please click my name to see what I'm thankful for today.

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  11. Oh, Jess. (((hug)))

    I'm grateful for my cat, Bianca. She's been gone for almost 9 years, but she was an awesome cat.

    And I'm grateful for you. :)

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  12. :( I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I know exactly how hard it is to lose a beloved pet. Rest in peace Sage.

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  13. Oh, Jess, my heart bleeds for you. I am so, so sorry for your loss.

    I had a dalmation once, Baby, and she was just the greatest dog. My spotted shadow. One day my husband called me at work and said she wasn't doing well. She wouldn't eat, wouldn't get up from the hallway floor. By the time I got home, she was in bad shape. We got her to the emergency vet in like five minutes. She died in my husband's arms about a minute later. It was awful. She'd just been to the vet and gotten a clean bill of health. The vet at the emergency clinic said it felt like to her Baby's spleen ruptured.

    I never thought I could cry so hard or for so long. The next day was my last day at my job as the business was closing, and the day she died was my son's 8th birthday.

    I loved her so much the way you loved Sage. They are always with us. I now have a wonderful Australian Shepherd who is also a shadow. He loves me dearly as I do him. We are inseparable. When the time comes, you may find another precious soul to fill the emptiness. Until then, remember all the joy you and Sage had together and know there are others out there who feel and sympathize with your pain.

    What a beautiful and loving post to a wonderful animal. I don't know how you did it. God bless. (sorry the post is so long)

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