In Memorial

As most of you know, my dog-child of eight years, Sierra, passed away on Tuesday, November 11, 2008. I am not going to say too much, because if you didn't know Sierra, you just won't understand, and if you did, then words aren't needed. I will say that she was her typical happy-go lucky self that afternoon when I left to go to work. She was fine when Mark came home. She mucked about on the porch as she does most of the time until she laid down in her kennel and fell asleep for the final time. We suspect that she had a heart attack, as her heart was weakened from an earlier bout with heartworms. She likely died around 9 pm; she was still warm when I found her at 11:30. I went outside to give her the anti-inflammatory pill she's been on for almost a year now. When she didn't get up when I called, I walked over to her kennel to wake her up, discovering her curled up with one paw over her eye as if she was dreaming. She wasn't. My brother Andy and my mother came over, and Mark and Andy buried her despite the rain and the lateness of the hour. I have ordered a Husky statue to commemorate her final resting place, under an oak tree by the corner of the property. There is no reason for me to go into detail about my feelings on the event - I think most of you know how I feel. I will never forget my beautiful Sierra Linda.