A cold wet nose wakes me at 5:58 am.A reminder that the best day ever is about to start. The leaves from the plane trees now starting to fall. For the next three months Loic will be kept busy blowing them into piles. The PONs will be equally busy leaping into the leaf piles and redistributing them.
The Anglo-Saxon media is busy reporting the storm heading towards the Carolina's. Here the attention is on the French islands in the Caribbean.
The mayors secretary delivers a formal note concerning the village commemoration for the end of the 'Great' war. A rather sweet ending as a 'memory of the millions of young men of all nationalities who died at lifes dawning'.
This is what the war memorial looked like in 1922 shortly after it was unveiled.
Some of the houses in the background have gone but this is as it appears today. 'The Font' using the patience of Job has almost convinced the villagers that recreating the old wooden fence is a good idea. '' But what colour should the paint be ? " typical of the impedimenta still to be overcome. The stonework will be pressure washed next month to remove a century of dirt.
Guess what this article is saying is that life is a miracle and the parting from it a mystery. Dogs being sentient want to have someone to say farewell to : https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/vets-pet-put-down-final-moments-reality-twitter-facebook-euthanasia-a8532926.html
9 comments:
Blogger doesn't like me posting off my phone so have found my laptop and can reply - finally. Thank you - that has been doing the rounds and I shared it with my first year vet nurses who are currently studying euthanasia and grief etc.. but every situation is different and helping an owner to understand what is happening and providing support is the aim. I always stay - actually in the past I have often been the one doing it which is not easy with your own pet.... but these days I let the experts do it.
I still have pictures of Wilf and Digby appearing on my screensavers.... much loved and never forgotten. I cried as much over those two boys as I did over my own dog Jess, two years ago.
The words ending the letter about the remembrance sum up so poignantly why these memorials and ceremonies are so important. And why some of us are so devastated at our country's decision to cut loose from a mechanism which, however imperfectly, seeks to promote cooperation between Europe's nations...
The Pons look excited today - their happiness is all over their precious faces.
We agree that the fence looks good around the memorial - maybe a dark gray would be a suitable shade although black or white are more simple to use, as graffiti will surely be applied and it is easier over the years to match a more standard colour.
Have a great weekend.
Those young men -- not just died but 'cut down' (the literal is 'sythed').
...seconded...
Hari Om
thankyou for that article. A large part of my health practice was centered around dealing with death and grief... am inspired to produce a post related to this for my angel Jade's memorial in October - better start typing now as the wrist means five times longer to get anything on the screen... as always, am leaving you page with profound and warm thoughts! YAM xx
I can't wait to see the beautiful memorial all clean again. I just had the Vet come to my home to euthanize my 14 yr old blind and deaf setter about 4 weeks ago; it was difficult, of course, but the Vet was gentle and wonderful, and it actually was quite beautiful - dignified and peaceful. I was scared, because I had a very bad experience with a previous euthanasia that was done hurriedly and traumatically in an examination room at a clinic, and I'll never get over the guilt of that, so this time I was determined to have it done at home before it became an emergency...
The last days of a family dog are also part of family lore. A first time when kids can learn the importance of grief, responsibility, trust and the impermanence of time. Having a dog in the family brings so many lessons about life. It would be good to think that farewells aren't farmed out to the vet in the hope of avoiding 'upsets'. Works for some, maybe not for others. We've always been fortunate in Scotland and in France of having vets who'd come out to the house and be patient enough to let everyone know what was happening. A shared experience and a dogs last gentle contribution to family memory and the understanding of mystery.
It was a privilege to do that for people - I did many at home. It was a time to be with the people, sit with the body, scatter flowers on the graves afterwards. I couldn’t do it at home with Jess as she started having seizures, but a wonderful thing if it can be done.
Post a Comment