I was 7 and my beloved grandfather had died. I'd never known death before.
"So what is death for," I cried.
"It's for love," she answered.
"I don't LOVE a thing about death!"
"But if you did not know death, you'd never know how strong your love is for your granddad.
You'll miss him, but mostly what you'll miss is the love he gave right back to you.
Death teaches us about the strength of that love.
We don't usually realize it until we no longer have it.
Only after we've lost it do we realize how important love is to our lives. It leaves a hole in our hearts when it's gone.
Death shows us that hole, but it teaches us that we need to let love back in to fill it up again."
That was a long time and many deaths ago, including the death of the one who so carefully explained it to me one snowy day in March, 1950. It was a lesson well learned. It didn't stop the pain of that moment, but it opened my heart for more love and a lot of understanding.
I'm sorry you lost your beloved pet, Mary.
I think we all understand and grieve with you.
