Yesterday, at 5:15 in the morning, our JoJo decided she had breathed her last and left our little home without us. By God’s grace we were all four by her side telling her it was okay and giving her kisses and hugs as we told her what a good girl she was. And she was a good girl. She had been battling a degenerative disease in her hind quarters for over a year and had recently gotten wheels to provide a little more freedom. But she seemed to fade in the last week and by Tuesday night, we knew things were changing.
We buried her last night, the four of us, standing around her grave holding hands and sobbing. She was unequivocally heroic. She always had a smile unless SHE had done something wrong, and she did her best each day despite her infirmities which grew more and more challenging. You would have never known how much she battled by her smile and attitude.
I’m afraid I’m not half the person my dog was.
She had a spirit to be admired, and, think what you will, against any hard evidence to the contrary, I believe she is in Heaven and whole again. She was definitely a gift from God. As I sat pondering her this morning and thought about what we, as Christians, are supposed to exemplify if we are growing and walking as we should be, the Fruit of The Spirit list came to mind:
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Goodness
- Gentleness
- Faithfulness
- Self-Control
JoJo had all these, in abundance. (Well, if I’m being honest, she did struggle a little in the self-control department when she came within three miles of a piece of food or chocolate. Yeah. We understood each other.)
Me? Well, I’m still working on most of the list on an on-going basis. As one friend said to me today, “No wonder God took her. She was all ready.”
Oh yes she was.
More later, but, that’s where I’ve been.
We love you, JoJo. You were, hands-down, the best dog ever.
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