Gracie Shaw, 5/21/94

Gracie Shaw, 5/21/94 - 2/25/09

It was time. She knew so, the vet said so, I thought so. I drew Reiki symbols over her head, stroked her side as the valium lured her out of anxious pacing into peaceful slumber, willing and needing to depart (it was time, it was), and now I celebrate the life of this once feisty little Schnauzer who came to me like an angel 15 years ago and led me through crisis into clarity with her zest, her verve, her love. Ciao, Grazia. You were aptly named.

Comments

Jan said…

With heart and tissues I have read about Gracie.
It seems that the choices are not always choices.
(((LISA))) and the rest of the Shaw household.
xxxxxxxxj

February 25, 2009 at 11:08 PM

Geoffrey Philp said…

Dear Lisa,

My heart goes out to you right now.

1Heart,
Geoffrey

February 26, 2009 at 2:36 PM

Reflections Magazine editor said…

I remember visiting your home once and meeting your pets. I am sure Gracie was one of the dogs I met that day. Your bigger dog, can't remember its name, was lying on your bed so peaceful and relaxed. I looked at the scene in amazement, for as a child I was never allowed to have animals in my home, much less share my bed with them. Many years have passed; my father died and on the morning of his funeral, Woody appeared at our doorstep, wet, beaten, tired and hungry...he was my father's goodbye gift to the boys and me. My father would do things like this...That was over two years ago. Today, Woody travels on vacation everywhere with us, and if he is not allowed in we are not interested in going. He receives warm baths in his own tub, eats well everyday and has his own health insurance. Most importantly, Lisa, he sleeps in our bed...all our beds, the boys and my husband's and mine. He is king in my home; he is fully and completely loved.

I am sorry for your loss, for I know it is truly a great loss.

March 17, 2009 at 9:22 PM

Ingrid the Ghost Comes Back to Visit

I would like to show you where I used to live. I don’t live anymore in the sense of physical life as you understand it but I live in another dimension that gives me some flexibility of movement. From here I can gently re-enter the earth plane, almost like a whisper, tugging at my mom until she is still enough to sense me. I share this not for her but for all of you who seemed to know so much about me from my mom’s words and pictures. I read the good words you wrote when I left and was touched because I was not a famous dog or a winner or a champion of any sort, just a deeply loved girl who had the luck to land in the right home. I want to show you the best parts of my life, which means where I lived because my home was my life. Take a look around the room - the living room, the kitchen, the family room –all those flaws you see in the walls and ceiling are really welcoming caves where my spirit has settled. I’m in every crack in the wall, every fold of fabric, every scra...

God’s Covenant With Animals: Stewardship, Not Rule

What is our human responsibility to the earth and its non-human inhabitants? Traditional Biblical scholars would say one of master-servant and ecologists would say one of caretaker. However, using either frame, neither movement has responded in full view of the evidence presented throughout the Bible that God clearly included animals in covenantal relationships. With Biblical scholars neglecting the sanctity of animals and secular environmentalists neglecting God. A closer look at the Old Testament reveals that God designed humankind’s role in relation to the animals as one of stewardship rather than domination . Traditionally religious people often cite Scripure justify a master/servant relationship between humans and animals rather than one of partnership, but deeper investigation invites us to see texts rich with references, both literal and figurative, to the partnership between humankind and the animal world. From Gen...

Living with an Old Dog: Every Moment a Blessing

This morning I thought my old girl, Ingrid, had died, and I was stunned as I tried to lift her head and leg and they just fell, heavy, onto the bed. I didn't even see her breathing. It felt as if there was no life in her body at all. I surrounded her with my body, thinking she was gone, calling her name.....and then she moved. :-'(. I thought, "this is the way I want you to leave," peacefully, without drama. Maybe she was practicing. I cried much of the morning. But she's still here....a blessing. She turned 14 last week and quietly enjoyed a small birthday party attended by her two housemate dogs and three other dog friends. She was subdued but enjoyed enough birthday treats to the point of vomiting them up onto the couch at midnight. She can no longer climb into the bed and anxiously paced back and forth along the foot board until I lifted all 50 pounds of her and she curled up and slept till morning. On occasion I would awaken in the middle of the...

The REIKIDOGS Blog

Search This Blog