Goodbye Friend

A tough day to blip.

Our beloved dog Casey has moved on. She was 14 1/2 years old - that's 101 in dog years. She had a good life and was the best dog we could have asked for. She welcomed our girls home when they were born and was a constant loyal companion to us all. She had been struggling with her hips and legs and was losing weight. She just wasn't the happy dog we knew for so many years. The vet came to our house to help her move on. Casey seemed ready and at peace. We know now she is happy and running in heaven with her friends. She will be greatly missed.

The words on the page in the photo are a beautiful prayer we found online.

A Parting Prayer

Dear Lord, please open your gates
and call St. Francis
to come escort this beloved companion
across the Rainbow Bridge.

Assign her to a place of honor,
for she has been a faithful servant
and has always done her best to please me.

Bless the hands that send her to you,
for they are doing so in love and compassion,
freeing her from pain and suffering.

Grant me the strength not to dwell on my loss.
Help me remember the details of her life
with the love she has shown me.
And grant me the courage to honor her
by sharing those memories with others.

Let her remember me as well
and let her know that I will always love her.
And when it's my time to pass over into your paradise,
please allow her to accompany those
who will bring me home.

Thank you, Lord,
for the gift of her companionship
and for the time we've had together.

And thank you, Lord,
for granting me the strength
to give her to you now.

Amen.

- © Brandy Duckworth, 1998