All pet owners know that inevitably that day will come when their pet is no longer there by their side – but such knowledge doesn’t make it any easier to bear when that moment does come. Losing a dog really is like losing a member of your family. Although if you’ve never had a dog, I can only imagine that it seems a bit nutty. But there really is a void that is left – and like a deep wound, it takes a long time to heal.
Celeste and I had Charlie for 12 years and considered him our “first child”. When you were lonely, Charlie was there to keep you company. When you were overwhelmed, Charlie helped to put everything in perspective. When you were trying to cook, brush your teeth, get dressed, or move something heavy, Charlie was always in the way – directly underfoot.
He taught us patience.
He taught us the simple zen-like joy of just being.
He taught us how to give even when you think you’ve given all you can.
But most importantly, he taught us what the term unconditional love really meant.
In addition to the legacy of memories that he leaves us with – he also lives on in a way in the lives of the 3 clients of mine, who, after meeting charlie here in our studio, went out and got Tibetan Terriers for themselves (thanks for sharing the pics guys!). Such was the impact he had on others. If you liked dogs, you couldn’t not like Charlie – he was cute, funny, but most of all, he was chill. All he wanted to do was hang near you. Tibetans were bred as companion dogs for Tibetan monks and, true to form, Charlie was a companion. He didn’t ask for much, just proximity. My clients seemed to thoroughly enjoy having him greet them in the hallway and sit under our feet at meetings.
While there were many sad moments at the end and lots of tears shed I would like to mention a bright point in an otherwise painful matter – our veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Berg of Animal General without whom I’m not sure how we could have dealt with the situation. Her guidance, support and empathy actually left me feeling good about the whole thing – I was telling my friends, “Well, it went better than I could have ever possibly imagined,” due completely to Dr. Berg. She even shed a tear with us as Celeste sang a lullaby as we put Charlie to rest. He really was at peace. I know even he was comforted by her presence.
We followed Dr. Berg as she moved around to find a practice that best suited her and now we’d follow her anywhere. When the time comes for a new puppy, we’ll have to find a way to schlep him to the Upper West Side to Animal General to see Dr. Berg.
Charlie now rests in “the country” – meaning the backyard of my parents house – the house i grew up in. We did it the old-fashioned “hard” way since I thought we owed him that much. A large stone marks the spot where he lies wrapped in a shroud in which the entire family wrote our fondest memories of him along with with his favorite toys; Mr. Carrot, Mr. Shark, Teddy, and the Chomp-a-Bomb.. We thought it would help the boys process the whole thing as well (more thanks to Dr. Berg).
So thanks ChiChi (a nickname Miles gave him when he was first learning to speak) for being such a great companion. You will be sorely missed. But never forgotten. Woof. Good Boy.
