Gretchen the German Shepherd Dog

Published on Jan 1st, 2008

By Marie Bowman (Mississippi)

Gretchen died from cancer. I miss her so much I feel like I can't stand it. I got her when she was seven weeks old, a fat ball of fur. She was with me through every bad time in my life over the past 91/2 years; standing quietly by, licking my hand or licking away my tears. She would have died for me. I think she knew I would have done anything I could to make her well, but I just didn't have the power. I am thankful to God that she passed away peacefully, naturally, without my having to make that awful decision: something I told God I didn't think I could do.
I love you Gretch, you will always be with me. When I see you in my mind, I see you with your ball in your mouth, tail wagging and giving me that sideways mischeivous look as if you're saying, "come get it, if you can!" Oh, how I wish you were here to lick away my tears one more time.
Until we meet again, I love you, I miss you, and I hope you know, God couldn't have given me a greater gift than you. Farewell, old friend.