By Timothy D. Naegele[1]

She was part black Lab and part Pointer, according to my daughter; and she was named Ketzy by my granddaughter.  In March, she would have been fifteen years old.  Like lots of women, she lived life on her terms; and yes, she was spoiled.

I was with her at my daughter’s home on the night before she died; and I walked her to the nice green park at the end of their street, as I had done so many times before.  Then, she lay in front of their fireplace while we watched football and ate our dinner.

The next morning she seemed slow to rise when my son-in-law went to exercise at the local CrossFit. On his return, he and my daughter were at her side as she seemed to drift in and out of consciousness.

They took her to the vet’s, who put her to sleep.  Part of me died with her; and I asked that some of her ashes be buried with me.  Aside from writing every day, walking her had become part of my life and routines, which I enjoyed immensely.

Yes too, my kids and I have had other animals that we loved dearly, who are no longer with us.  And I used to hike with my son’s black Lab for hours at a time.  Each occupies a special place in our hearts that can never be replaced.

Dear God, please tell the Wonder Dog how much she is loved and missed.  And let our other loved ones who have gone before welcome and embrace her.  All are missed by each of us. Let her dance and run like a puppy again, and trip the light fantastic!

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© 2024, Timothy D. Naegele

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[1]  Timothy D. Naegele was counsel to the United States Senate’s Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and chief of staff to Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient and former U.S. Senator Edward W. Brooke (R-Mass).  See, e.g., Timothy D. Naegele Resume-21-8-6  and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/accomplishments/  He has an undergraduate degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), as well as two law degrees from the School of Law (Boalt Hall), University of California, Berkeley, and from Georgetown University.  He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War, assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency at The Pentagon, where he received the Joint Service Commendation Medal (see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commendation_Medal#Joint_Service).  Mr. Naegele is an Independent politically; and he is listed in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in Finance and Business.  He has written extensively over the years (see, e.g., https://naegeleblog.wordpress.com/articles/ and https://naegeleknol.wordpress.com/articles/), and studied photography with Ansel Adams.  He can be contacted directly at tdnaegele.associates@gmail.com