Man's Best Friend

 

I Love My Dog

I love my dog as much as I love you
But you may fade, my dog will always come through
All he asks from me is the food to give him strength
All he ever needs is love and that he knows he'll get

Except dogs don’t live as long as we do.

The editor of my favorite newsletter, Teresa Hanafin, announced the passing of her beloved Yorkshire Terrier, Brady. I sent her the following email.

"'Tis better to have loved and lost; Than never to have loved at all. 

I am sure that our West Highland Terrier is wondering what all the fuss over him is about, but then he didn't read your newsletter and see the sad news about your Yorkie. 

My condolences of course, but I will tell you the same thing that I told my niece when her beloved Cotton passed.  When Bruce Springsteen was playing at Fenway, he flashed  a picture of the late Clarence Clemons on the screen.  He said what I paraphrsed for my niece, that "if he's here and we're here, then Clarence is here".  As long as you are here, your Yorkie is still here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KP_XkN2v7OM 

As to naming you next dog.... com'n there will be next one.....no one can replace Brady, but how to best honor Brady? Since I was honored to have been selected in your pet essay, in that essay I said that our West Highland terrier's name is also Brady.  I am a sports fan like you appear to be, and I can guess where the name came from ;).  Our West Highland terrier's groomer is Lisa Pacheo of Raynham, MA.  When she grooms Brady, he plays with her West Highland Terrier Pip.  Lisa and her husband, the former chief of police of Raynham, (why are former Chiefs of Police either like Andy Taylor or Bull Conners?) show her terrier.  She, well Pip, won best of Breed at the 2015 Westminster Dog Show.   As a result we learned that Pip's American Kennel Club, AKC name was Great Expectations. Thus, if our Brady was AKC registered then his name would obviously be the Grtaetst Of All Time,  G.O.A.T.  So to honor your Brady, may I suggest that, if its a male, the names Bill (Russell), Red (Arnold Auerbach) or Bobby (Orr).  If its a female maybe Simone (Biles) or Mia (Hamm)."