Yukon Cornelius

Yukon Cornelius
Oct. 12, 1994-Feb. 3, 2008

"The dog is the most faithful of animals and would
be much esteemed were it not so common.
Our Lord God has made his greatest gift the commonest."

– Martin Luther

Prayer in memory of Yukon on his 15th birthday

Lord God,
to those who have never had a pet,
this prayer will sound strange,
but to you, Lord of All Life and Creator of All Creatures,
it will be understandable.

Our hearts are heavy
As we face the loss in death of our beloved Yukon
who was so much a part of our lives, even for a short time.

Yukon made our lives more enjoyable
and gave us cause to laugh
and to find joy in his company.

We remember his fidelity and loyalty
and will miss his presence in our home and our lives.

From Yukon we learned many lessons
such as naturalness
and the unembarrassed request for affection (and for food).

In caring for his daily needs
we were taken up and out of our own self-needs
and thus learned to serve another.

May the death of this precious creature of yours
remind us that death comes to all of us,
animal and human,
and that it is the natural passage for all life.

May Yukon sleep in your godly care
and rejoice to meet his dearest friends once more
when all creation awakens to the fullness of liberation.

Amen+

Adapted by my friend Jan Wiersma from Edward Hayes, Prayers for the Domestic Church

May 14, 2006

Lay down beside me, my dear one,
Let me stroke your silken ears
Let me memorize the feel of your body
For the day when you lie beside me no more.

i carry your heart with me -- e.e. cummings

i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

i fear

no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Doggone unbearable

Life is bearable if I act as though I never had a dog. Then I see a forgotten bag of treats, or I walk in the back door and remember the tail-wagging, body-wriggling greetings I used to get after a day at work. The shields of denial part momentarily and, between them, my mind's eye gets a glimpse of my beloved companion. Instantly my entire body sags under the weight of the loss. Then the shields snap shut, for I can bear the pain no more than a moment.

Dogs have short lives, my rational mind says. You knew he would die eventually, so there's no reason to act like it was such a tragedy, it scolds.

Yes, but, but ...

Indeed. What has reason got to do with the bond that forms between two creatures whose entire shared vocabulary consists of a handful of one-word commands and non-verbals like head scritching and tail wagging?

If love were required to be "reasonable," there would be a whole lot less of it in this world. On the other hand, it seems quite reasonable to become attached to someone who has been with you through divorce, depression and displacement. It seems entirely rational to love someone who for more than 13 years has shared my tea, eagerly joined me on walks and slept and dreamed beside me.

Then it occurs to me that what would be more unbearable than losing Yukon would be to never have loved him at all.

Wise words ...

... off a bumper sticker, no less: "Kindness to animals is the hallmark of human achievement."

Hail, Snoopy! Beagle Wins Westminster

Hail, Snoopy! Beagle Wins Westminster

By BEN WALKER

NEW YORK (AP) — Start dancin', Snoopy. You're out of the Westminster doghouse.

At long last, a beagle is America's top dog. Baying and barking to his heart's delight, Uno lived up every bit to his name Tuesday night, becoming the first of his breed to win best in show at the nation's biggest canine competition.

"He's a people's dog, a merry little hound," handler Aaron Wilkerson said.

A sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden that called and chanted Uno's name stood and roared when he was picked as numero uno. He got right into the act, jumping on Wilkerson and confirming his other title: noisiest in show.

Years from now, it'll be known as the "ah-roo!" heard 'round the ring.

The only breed consistently among the nation's most popular dogs for nearly 100 years, a beagle had never won in the 100 times the Westminster Kennel Club had chosen a winner. That changed when judge J. Donald Jones pointed to this nearly 3-year-old package of personality.

No longer an underdog — make that an Underdog — Uno beat out two neatly primped poodles, a top Sealyham terrier, a sleek Weimaraner, a lively Australian shepherd and a sprightly Akita.

"He's perfect, he was a 10," Jones said. "He does cuteness well."

Read the rest here:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ibgIvow71lch7hSBADK_7n5U44KgD8UPBHU00