Shadow

Shadow was shaggy white, big eyed puppy that Rick's grandmother gave to our niece, Samantha around sixteen years ago.......Shadow crossed over the rainbow today.  He followed Sam around like her......shadow, and as she grew up and her life became more and more complicated, Shadow became her dad's(my younger brother, Ricky)dog.

Shadow, like every other dog that has lived here on the farm, had a wild and wacky personality.  I bet we will find balls hidden for years, that he brought over from Ricky's house and hid down around the barn and out in the woods.  If there was a tennis ball, baseball, basketball or soccer ball that he could get his teeth into, it was his!
Also, cute stuffed animals were never safe around Shadow, he loved to fight with them.....and then they too were hidden around the farm.

When Jordan was born, Shadow loved him......he was like a built in babysitter......he would play ball with Jordan for hours, fetching every ball Jordan rolled, pushed and eventually threw at him.  But it was obvious this past year, Shadow was slowing down.....sometimes he would come to visit us and not remember how to get home.  Some days it seemed he came to visit, just to let me know he knew we loved him......he would come in and eat our dogs' food, drink their water, lie down for awhile and then bark to go home.

I know my brother Ricky's heart is breaking tonight.......Ricky has had some serious health problems the past few years, but it seemed Shadow was his protector, he stayed close to Ricky, always keeping a watchful eye on him when he was sick.

Samantha had called me yesterday and told me  she thought Shadow was dying, Rick and I went to check on him, and I knew he would not last long.......I lay down on the floor beside him, reminded him how much we loved him and how much we would miss him.  Even though he did not live with us, he was a part of us, and I will miss him.

Tonight, whisper a prayer for Ricky and Samantha, the loss of a beloved pet can hurt so much.....grief is grief, and pain is pain......and there is a big empty spot in their little home......where a white shaggy dog use to be.