Our sweet dog, our Bella Blue, passed away on Monday. She is no longer in any pain, but our hearts continue to ache for the best dog a family could have had.
Thanks to Miss Bella Blue, I know these things for sure...
Running on the treadmill will never match the joy of running along-side a delighted Bella. Since losing Bella, my biggest regret is all treadmill runs I took when I could have been outside running with my favorite partner. I am grateful that my treadmill broke last fall. It forced me out on the road with my girl again. Running our four mile out-and-back route was a gift I didn’t recognize until now.
Bella REALLY loved to go to the park to retrieve with Beau. She would FLY through the local school-yard’s grassy field after her favorite pink-and-blue rubber ball. Beau could throw that toy SO far, no challenge for our girl though. She was such an athlete. This made her failing health in the past month even more painful to watch. I will remember her as the athlete she was.
Clean-up after a meal with little kids was easier when I could open up the back door and let our eager Bella inside. Sweeping up the crumbs isn’t nearly as satisfying as it was to watch Bella scarf up the bits of chicken, noodles or anything else our messy kiddos may have dropped.
In Bella’s mind (and my heart) she was more human than canine. I will always remember driving down I-5, Bella sitting in the passenger seat next to me. She didn’t snuggle down and lay like a typical dog. Instead, she leaned back in the seat her head level with mine and gazed out the window. We would drive by another car and you could see the people do a double-take. Yep, that’s a dog. If only I could get the shades to stay on her face...
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Much like in the car, Bella was a head-turner throughout her life. Without fail, anytime we would take Bella on outings, people would comment on her. She was a stunner. Weimaraners bear the nickname “gray ghost” and she had a quality about her that intrigued people. She knew she wasn’t ordinary, and her people did too.
Bella made “boogie-men” seem like less of a concern. The comfort and security of knowing we had Bella, always helped to make our home feel more safe. Though her spirit was all love, she had the ability to bark something fierce. In just the few days since we said goodbye, I have already missed the comfort of knowing our "Bella-alert" was turned on. Something that I know I will learn to get used to in our Bella-less days ahead.
Bella was better than a therapist at times. (Shh, don’t tell Beau.) She helped me through the grief of losing our first daughter, Gwen. When I was home alone in the days following our sad goodbye, I remember crying like I had never cried before. Bella was my comfort. She climbed up on my lap and was still. She wasn’t a dog to be still often, but she knew that I just needed a calm comfort. Her head rested in my lap for minutes, or maybe hours. I don’t recall how long. I do know that she didn’t leave my side until I was ready for her to leave.
Bella was my first glimpse at the kind of father that I knew Beau would be to our children. I liked what I saw for sure. Beau's ability to provide for her every need so selflessly was obvious from the day we picked her out at just 6 weeks of age, to her last day, as he so thoughtfully eased her pain.
Sigh. We miss you Bella Blue. Thanks for EVERYTHING.
