Farwood's Blackberry Patch

I spent most of my childhood on a small farm. In addition to general livestock (cows, horses, goats, pigs, chickens, and sheep) we bred and sold dogs. There was a litter of Labrador Retrievers born when I was 15 and after a week or so my mom noticed that one of the pups had only one eye. She asked me if I would like to have the puppy.

There were always a ton of animals around and many of them had been "mine" but of the few that might have been considered pets, I never really had much say in what happened to them. This little puppy was my first true pet and I loved her fiercely.

She went to college with me for a year but it was not an easy thing for either of us. I couldn't afford the rent it costs to be in a god friendly house off campus and she was in the house most of the time which is torture for a farm dog. I asked my mom to keep her for the summer so I could arrange a better situation, that turned into 5 years. I have only seen her a few times since then and that kills me; I missed her constantly.

Earlier this month she got sick and mom took her to the vet clinic where she works part time. After some tests they found that her heart was beating too fast - about 3x the average rate. Medication slowed it for a while but she still couldn't regulate the beating on her own. We were afraid we would have to make the decision to euthanize her.

On the 15th of July at 3am her heart stopped. She had decided for us. There was no wining or whimpering, no gasping for breath, no suffering. There was just peace. She just closed her eye and let go.

There was nothing fantastically remarkable about Patch; she was a dog like any other. But those who have shared their lives with dogs (or cats) know that even the most common and mundane of them are inconceivably magical and being with them makes you a better person than you would have ever been without them. We come to know animals in a way that we never know those of our own species. They offer the purest kind of love and expect less than nothing in return. They can't be anything but honest, apologetically and endlessly honest.

If you have never had a dog or a cat I encourage you to consider it. Spend time with someone who does and feel it out. It's not an effortless situation by any means; pets require an enormous commitment and will consume much of your time, energy, and money, but what you get in return is worth infinitely more.

This is not Patch, but this person clearly feels the same about her dog as I do.

In the fall, we're planting a blackberry bush at my mom's house to remember Patch. That's what we do when something dies, we plant something for them. I imagine us in the future making fresh summer ice cream with those berries, from Patch's bush. I would love to share that with my children the way my mom and grandma did with me so many times when I was a child.

I want to thank my mom for taking such amazing care of Patch when I wasn't able to give her the life she deserved. I never worried about her for a minute because I knew she was in the best hands I could imagine. And my Patch, She taught me so much about myself and about the world around me. I am truly a better person for having known her. She'll be the mother to every other dog I have. I'll remember her for the rest of my life.