I spy with my little eye... a TEDDY!!!
He was always the leader of the pack
when we'd go on walks. In his later years, he would disappear on me and I'd worry about where he'd gone. Then when I got home, ready to organize a search party, he'd be there on our deck or his owner's patio, catching his breath. He seemed to know his limits and when to go home.
Unlike Blaise.
More than once, Blaise collapsed
in the middle of a long walk and had to be carried home. The last time, I had to call my husband home from work to help me get Blaise onto a tarp.
He had lost weight: "down to a hundred pounds," still too much for me. Ted was much smaller, only forty pounds, and in the end, he was no harder for me to carry than a sleepy toddler.
Bailey
Both Bailey and Blaise
started declining a few years before the older dog, Ted the Red Heeler, who lived to age 16. But the day came when Ted wouldn't even head into the meadow. He was smart! And we were heartbroken.
Like angels in the afternoon light
If there's an afterlife, you will greet me there, and you will meet Prince and Bear, and you'll romp and play tug-of-war and run the meadow just like before.