I've never posted anything on Facebook before, but I wanted to share this.
My friend's Staffie, Kai, passed away this week. I have spent a lot of time with him over the years, but I didn't realise how much he meant to me until I started digging up some old pictures for my friend.
There is a backstory here. When I first met my friend, we were dating, and I knew before I met her that she had two dogs. At that time, I was nervous of dogs. It seems ridiculous now, as I have changed so much. But when I was two years-old, I put my hand out to pet a dog, and it bit me. I can't remember this, but it must have had a big psychological impact on me.
I wanted to have the experience of being around dogs, and Kai and Keiko changed me as much as anything that has ever happened to me. I gradually became less nervous. I began to embrace them.
Then something unexpected happened. I had already bonded with Kai, but I began to really bond with my friend's second dog, Keiko. She just took a liking to me. When my friend came to visit me, she wouldn't go anywhere without me. She didn't want to leave me.
Eventually, it was decided that Keiko would come to live with me, and she's been with me for seven years now. My friend comes to visit her regularly, and I've looked after Kai a lot as well.
I knew Kai was old, and initially I was quite calm about his passing. But yesterday I realised how much I loved him, and I sobbed and sobbed. I couldn't stop crying for hours. I'm still crying now. I reflected back on all the happy times that we'd spent together. I can't believe he's not going to be here any more. I will miss him so much. It hurts as much as the loss of any person. I make no distinction between the two.
Anyway, I made this video tribute to Kai:
He is the darker Staffie, my dog Keiko is the bigger and lighter-coloured one. When I made this video, everything came flooding back to me. All the time we'd spent together, all four of us, what Kai meant to me, how much Kai loved Keiko. Everything.
I don't know why, but it would mean a lot to me if people watched it.
I also wanted to remind people to appreciate your loves every day that they're here. Remember to take loads of pictures and capture video of them. It does help a little bit when they're gone. Even though it's sad, it's a kind of happy sad where you recall all the places you've been and moments that you've shared with them. Treasure every one of those moments.