Jake

Last Christmas, my sister and brother-in-law were visiting.  We were at my other sister’s house and my bro-in-law picked up one of their dogs.  Jake.  He held him and after petting him for awhile said, “Those eyes don’t see much anymore.”

I knew Jake was getting old.  I knew that his senses were beginning to fail.  But I think that’s when it hit me just how old he was.  He was fifteen-years-old.  He was nearly blind and deaf.  He could barely smell.  One of Jake’s great loves was food and if scraps fell off the table or the counter, he couldn’t see, hear or smell them, even if he was standing right next to them.  I often wondered if he’d make it through 2012.  Last night, he died.

Before he lived with my sister, he lived with an older woman, so he preferred a quiet life.  He was content to curl up next to someone for hours.  I read many a mystery novel with Jake by my side and when I pull a mystery off the bookshelf, I always want to have Jake around at that time.  He was gentle with children and would rise to the occasion if it was desired that he be a king or a prince during play.  (Once, he even had a throne!)  For a long time he was my niece’s favorite because of how quiet and gentle he was.  I remember one of the countless times that I watched the dogs while they were on vacation and when they stopped by to get the dogs on their way home my niece walked in without a hello, found Jake on the couch, picked him up and carried him back to the car.  It was so cute!

Goodbye, sweet Jake.  You are loved and you will be missed.