Atom“Remembering our Furry Friend”
“Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper as his partner.’ So, out of the ground the Lord God formed every animal of the field and every bird of the air and brought them to the man to see what he would call them… Genesis 2:18-19
We called her “Nutmeg,” (she was brown and white and we were living in Ankeny, IA, headquarters for Tones Spices) or “Meg” for short (my kids had just watched the movie Hercules, and Meg was his girlfriend). She was our friend, too, an English Springer Spaniel with a nose for birds and a love of hunting. She was my best hunting partner for the last 14 years. (Sorry Brett and Shawn, Dean and Myron.) We hunted in Nebraska and Iowa, in South Dakota and North Dakota, and in Minnesota…lots of miles and lots of smiles.
We said goodbye to her on Monday…the years and cancer caught up with her this last month. It was a sad day for all of us. Just a dog…but more than that…a family friend and companion…an image of grace day after day in our home. I mean, who but the family dog is more eager to see you any time you show your face? Even if you yelled at them earlier in the day for getting into the garbage or for pulling your toast off the table? Forgiveness is always a part of their demeanor. Grace…acceptance…joy…friendship.
“It is not good that the man (or woman) should be alone…I will make for him a helper as his partner.”
Dogs are one of God’s good gifts: helpers, partners, and friends. My Dad tells of the “sheep dog” that helped with sheep herding when he was growing up in South Dakota. My Mom used to tell of her Springer who pulled her across the frozen lake on her ice-skates when she was a little girl. Many a friend tells of their hunting partner, or of the companionship and comfort shared by their “helper” when beloved people have left us alone.
“It is not good that the man (or woman) should be alone…I will make for him a helper as his partner.”
And we grieve when these helpers and partners are gone…just as we do for other friends. I took my cup of coffee to the easy chair on Monday afternoon and did what I do so often when I lose a friend. I thanked God for their friendship and remembered the joys shared (as well as some of the challenges: boots chewed…Barbie clothes eaten…flower beds trashed by her relentless hunting) and felt the tears well in my eyes. We talked together with family and remembered. It is the way we grieve and the way we heal.
And…I wondered a bit: “Do dogs go to heaven?” Don’t know…but I do know that in God’s original good creation they were part of the plan…and we are promised in scripture not clouds and harps but “a new heavens and earth,”…so…
Remembering our furry partners and helpers,
Pastor Wade
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