Home is your dog refusing to die...because she knows you need her to live

Jewel is our family dog. 

Her full name is "Jewel a' la Champion"...Jewel comes from Madison's middle name and the rest was based on what we envisioned her to be...she did not disappoint.

She lives today because she knows we need her to live.

She is our friend, protector and guide.

She draws our compassion, our love and our hope for tomorrow right out of our soul.

Jewel should have been dead about a year ago, but she survives against the odds.  She is a living miracle.

Jewel was diagnosed last year with sarcoma....soft tissue cancer which will eventually grow into every soft tissue she has in her body.

                Madison, "how old do I have to be to get a dog?
                We, "old enough to take care of it by yourself"
                Madison, "well.....how old is that?
                We,, "how old do you think?
                Madison, "ten"
                We, "ten it it"

So, her Daddy began the search around nine and one half for that special "McKenzie" dog...he eventually found just the one at the Human Society...

It was love at first sight
It was mange, and illness at second sight..

Jewel was a true family labor of love...she had not been well cared for and was frightened, sick and alone.

We all took turns feeding, watching and nurturing her back to good health and she has never once forgotten that...

She is the "best dog ever".

She has been with our family through many trials...and, many successes.
She has guarded two of our homes fearlessly, as she should.
She has celebrated our joys...even kindly wearing silly birthday hats, boas, and clothes which would look silly on anyone but her.

She has been patient during our "ball" years where we were absent from home more than we were there...

Jewel can hold her "needing to go potty" for hours at a time...patiently waiting until one of us gets there to let her out.

Jewel has weathered all types of storms...weather, broken hearts, lost ball games, and family crisis.

Jewel loves to travel...her favorite thing to do is stick her nose out the window of the car to receive the cool air on her face...she loves riding down the driveway in the wagon with the kids.  She enjoys a good romp in the mud and the warm bath after.

Jewel is our family's one and only truly forever after through all circumstances, "Best Friend".

As things at our home changed this year, Jewel remained impartial.  She did not take sides.  She did not gossip with the neighbors, she did not judge. 

What she DID do was love us.  She lent her back to all of us to hug, she allowed each of us to support her during her surgery bringing out family compassion in a way no one else could.  She greeted each of us with a smile on her face and a quick wag of her tail.  She still does.

She barked when things got tense as if to day, "stop your silliness"....and, we most often did.

She barked when we would send her to the basement to sleep (her normal sleeping place) and insisted she sleep in the foyer in front of our door...she was protecting the kids and I.

Here, of late, she has taken to sleeping at the top of the stairs...woe to anyone who might attempt a stair climb at my home.  She valiantly protects us each night as if her life depended on it...and, I think it does.

Her doctors said she should already have met her maker...tumors grow daily on places of her body which make it difficult to walk...she walks.

Tumors grow so large that the average human would give up...she does not.

The kids and I were discussing her miraculous ability to live and concluded...

She cannot die because she knows, perhaps even better than we do, that we need her to live.

And, she does.

And, we are grateful.

My challenge to you....and me:  Do I take for granted the unconditional love of my family, friends and faithful dog?  Let's don't.

Let's take time today to reach out to those who give to us selflessly so that we may have a better life....

To our precious Jewel...we are forever grateful...and, forever changed by your example.

Blessings,
Lesa

PS.  Jewels lives b/c she is not in pain and has the desire to live.  When that changes, we will love her enough to let her go....on that you can depend.