GIVE ME A MOMENT

Normally, I write my blog up in about an hour's time. But this one I've been ruminating over for a number of days. 

You see, my dog Amelia had to be put down a week ago and for those of you who are pet owners, you know how very hard that is. So this blog is partly in her memory. 

Before we had Amelia, we had a bruiser of a golden lab named Sam. Weighing in an 135 lbs he was a lot of dog! I loved him dearly and he adored me but he was never in my husband's good books. So when Sam passed away, Sheldon made it very clear there would never be another dog in the house.

I tried to resign myself to this fact but alas, there was a hole in my heart that simply could not be filled. I longed for a dog, like Hannah longed for a child. I could not shake it. I cried often. Two years past and I still struggled with it! The girls at work threatened to drop a dog off at my doorstep anonymously. 

One day in prayer as I'm trying to wrestle this stupid desire to the ground, God said "I have a very special dog for you." Surprised as I was, I know His voice well enough to believe Him. It was a moment of hope.

About 10 months later, Sheldon had a change of heart and he agreed to us getting a new pup. Less than two weeks later, we were driving home from the cottage and a cardboard sign in the middle of nowhere had "BeagleX puppies for sale" written on it. We stopped in and this big gruff man plopped this floppy eared puppy with more skin than required right into my arms. 
My heart's desire was hand-delivered. A very special dog indeed.
She was my constant companion, my biggest fan and brought my family so many moments of comfort and joy! 

A moment is a measurement of time - usually considered bite-size. 
And in a bite-sized moment of time, so much can happen!
In a moment, you can:
Experience great joy or great pain.
You can fall in love.
You can get married or be widowed.
You can be humbled or exalted.
In fact our lives are made up of these moments. Some seem to last forever, some seem to blip right on by. But they are all a part of who we are and effect who we become. They change us. 
This past week Sheldon and I celebrated with our son as he graduated from McMaster University with his degree in Civil Engineering. A very proud moment indeed!

I miss my dog. I miss the jingling of her dog tags in the house, her warm body sitting beside me in the chair. I miss her little kisses on my hand to wake me up for her morning walk. I miss her face at the window when I come home and the lazy thumping of her tail when I walked into the room. Who knew a dog who slept so much could leave such a vacuum?

So give me a moment, to grieve, reminisce and remember Amelia. Give me a moment with all it's ups and downs, pain and joy, even the humdrum run-of-the-mill ones because they create my life's journey, the past, present and future.