April 6th, 2010

Last night I had to put down my collie, Blaze. She’d become a part of this farm, having gotten her the month after I moved in. She was a working dog and this was ‘her’ herd. She and Skidder, our border collie kept watch of the herd 24/7. I can only remember maybe two nights that they slept inside the house, the rest of the time they had to be outside watching the herd.

She was my constant companion and a friend and playmate to the horses, always playing their game of tag. Having brought her lifeless body home, we gave Skidder time to grieve and came back to find him quietly laying with his head on her back. He stopped calling for her in the middle of the night like he had done the previous night. He helped me bury her, staying at her side. At one point he tried to stop me then realized the futility. I let him say his “goodbyes” to her before covering her up with the light she had chewed up in my driveway and her favorite bones and blocks of wood, and that blue blanket she wrapped herself up in on cold winter nights, sleeping in late in the mornings. She wasn’t exactly a morning dog…not unlike her owner.

I went out to see what my 13 year old had written on the white cross. “Blaze, soar on incandescent wings, rest in peace.” I guess I can’t find anything more profound to say to you Blaze. Now I have to listen for you in the wind as you chase the herd. Only this time, I won’t call you back and tell you to stop teasing them. It’s good for them Blaze. And it’s good for me. God bless you and you’ll live in my memory and heart forever.

Raindance’s Blazing Skies
February 28, 2005 – April 6, 2006