Where does the time go when it ticks away. We grow taller, wider, smarter, we take trips, go to work and we often wake up one day and the years have passed us by. It is in these revelations that we can choose to change course. We find ourselves standing before new doors nervous but excited about the endless possibilities that stretch out before us. Each day at the hospital is like standing in front of a new door, waiting for what each minute might bring.
We get to have this experience everyday at the hospital, when someone brings home that new puppy or kitten. They are thinking about how fun this new adventure is going to be and what they want to teach their new pet. They wonder how to keep them healthy and safe. Is this new little bundle a fresh start? Could this be a precursor to having a child? Can they take care of something? Can they afford it? All of these questions and yet all the while time passes and the questions get answered and new ones arise. The puppy is now a dog and begins on a journey. The kitten has used up a life or two in its forward march to become a cat and to reign supreme over its family.
We watch as they age, they have illnesses and setbacks, but still they march forward keeping step with time. We watch as they begin to gray around their muzzles. We notice they don't seem as heavy as we carry them across room to the window ledge. They have trouble getting into the car and start to slow down. They sleep a little more and they eat a little less. Then suddenly you realize that time has crept ahead of them and they are starting to fall behind. The last grains of sand are spilling quickly though the hourglass and soon the last of their time will pass through and they will reach their end. It is then we find ourselves speeding through the movie reel of their lives lingering on the good times, a stick caught, a road trip taken, a gift of a gecko each morning by your bed and we speed through the boring or sad times. While we are heavy with grief and loss we arrive with them together to bid farewell. It is as if we are standing on the dock, bidding them well until we meet again as they sail on ahead of us to where time stands still.
We have had to make the long walk with our clients over the years, guiding them on how to say goodbye, and while it is never easy it helps me to know that is the one thing that we can do for our beloved pets that we can not do for our own species. We help ease their pain and help them move ever forward. Pets are in our lives for such a short amount of time in the overall course of our lives. They teach us how to love and live and in their passing they teach us how to die. With grace and dignity, without want or need for anything but LOVE!
