Life Renewed

Good Morning!


On this fine, warm March morning in Minnesota - 50 degrees at 6 a.m.! - I'm reviewing the past few weeks with wonder and gratitude.


My daughter's "closest family member," her dog, 'Tana, passed quite suddenly, leaving Paige devastated.  While I wondered at her sanity a couple of years ago when she adopted two feral cats, I am now so grateful that she can enjoy their sweet and mischievous friendship.  While they can't fill the void 'Tana leaves, they are a comfort.


Montana was a squirrely and awesome dog.  We didn't see one another often, but she talked to me on the phone, sang me happy birthday and happily accepted the surrogate ear scrubs I sent her way.  I love her, too, and miss her, but she's not far away.  She has visited twice to let me know that we remain connected.  She is with Paige, reminding her that love is infinite, that life continues, not only in some nebulous far-off dimension, but close and real and breathing in a renewed state of being.


The same message has come often from folks who find their departed dog sleeping next to them, breathing, the pressure of their body reminding their humans that love is forever, the life force vibrant and exceeding our perceived separation.


Our animals are perfect partners in this amazing mosaic.  Whether a dog or cat or some other furry or feathered friend, they take the journey with us, mirroring our own identity and teaching us love.


Leaving, they also leave the door open for us to discover ourselves in some new dimension of our personal creation.  So often, following the death of a dear friend, we realize that options beckon, that a new self emerges from the emptiness.


The cycles of life inform us.  The emergent new form may inspire us when we can breathe and allow its wisdom to fill the void.  We are entitled to the time we need to grieve - and to the gifts we inherit.  It was always the Plan.


Breathing into the new,
I am Phyllis, Becoming