Her Name Was Latte` And We Loved Her

For as long as she could remember, she knew her name was Latte`.  As time went on her family called her Te`Te`. She loved the sound of both, especially when the man would call her name.   She knew his name as well as her own.... Dad. Latte` loved the lady  mom and their boy she had been told was her brother.  Latte` always suspected that they were not really her family but they certainly loved her as much as one of their own.

She wondered what happened to her sister Glory, the one that looked just like her.  Latte` remembered that she fell asleep out in the snow covered yard one day and a nice big man carried her into the car. Glory never came back.  Latte` whimpered,  hoping she would come back..... She thought  maybe one day she would see Glory again.

The snow melted and summer came.  Latte` loved to play fetch with her tennis ball.  Secretly, she really liked to tease her mom when she stole her gardening gloves. Latte` never meant to make mom mad at her, just having fun she thought.  As the days moved along, Latte` noticed that she easily got tired and could not play fetch as much as she would have liked.  Her dad seemed to notice this too.  Latte` never realized it but there was something growing in her chest, pushing against her lungs and heart.

A couple of weeks ago after a visit to the Vet, things changed for Latte`.  Her family whispered things and she could see sadness in their faces.  She did not understand what was happening, although she did know that it was becoming harder to breath.  Her meals changed and she loved the taste of the chicken and steak that she was getting mixed with her other food.  Latte` had no idea what Velveeta cheese was, all she knew was that it was better than any treat she ever had.  However, she was getting wise that there was something hidden in that cheese, maybe a bitter pill or two.  To Latte`,  the cheese was to good to worry about what might be inside.

Days went by and Latte` felt weaker and weaker.  She worried about her family,  not throwing the tennis ball for her, she thought it was good exercise for them to repeatedly pick the ball up and throw it for her.

Yesterday her brother hugged her and said good-bye and got in the car with dad, she wondered if she would see the boy again.... she loved him.  She remembered her sleeping sister Glory being put in a car, and she never came back.  Latte` started to worry about her boy.  Later her dad returned without her boy, but by now she was to weak to worry.  Instead, she just closed her eyes and dreamed of running in circles, faster and faster.....

Bloggers Note:  I don't have the heart or the energy to finish this piece, it is more therapy for me than it is a story for you.  The inevitable happened today.  Lets just say that my wife and I did what needed to be done. Latte` is pain free and running with Glory, Sienna and Bianca.  I also do not mean to imply that the loss of a pet is the same as the loss of a person.  Those of you that are pet people know that there is a special place reserved in our hearts for loving a pet.  It is a different love and therefore a different grief when a pet passes. Latte` was only 5 and the tumor was growing and severely restricting her lungs.  Many thanks to the Staff at the Watertown Animal Hospital especially  Dr. Rebecca Reynolds, who helped reassure us at this most difficult time.

I looked into Latte`s eyes and said I was sorry