Hi everyone, today I have a guest post from one of our friends in New York… Here’s Jessica, from Used York City…
They say the best way to honor someone’s memory is by talking about them. “But how can you talk about Phoenix when you’ve never met him?”, some may ask. It’s true, while I’ve never met Phoenix or his dad, Mike, I’ve been following their blog for the better part of a year. In the vast, open world that is the Internet, I always looked forward to Mike’s upbeat and amusing posts about Phoenix, and sometimes, Phoenix’s hysterical posts about Mike. The narratives about their car rides together, their adventures in the kitchen, when they got 86’d from the Great Reno Balloon Races…you name it. These two did everything together, and as a pet parent to a senior Chihuahua myself, I totally got it.
That’s why, when I read the blog post about Phoenix suddenly passing away, my breath got caught in my throat and an empathy so strong washed over me, because unfortunately, I totally got that too. I understood immediately the loss that Mike was experiencing…how empty the house must feel without Phoenix’s paws pitter-pattering down the hall. How it must break his heart all over again when he finds dog hair on the sofa. How the sole spirit who shared everything with him was suddenly and terribly not there anymore. How it wasn’t just a dog he lost that day, rather his very best friend. And once that void is there, it’s impossible to know what will ever fill it.
Phoenix, my friend, you were the light of your dad’s life. And I know you knew that. Keep shining down on Mike, cause I know he needs you now perhaps more than ever.
Mike, my friend, keep honoring Phoenix’s memory. I’m certainly no expert on grief, but I’d like to imagine that someday, when you find a stray golden hair on your couch, instead of bringing tears it will bring back a story of the time you two did something incredibly joyous together. And Phoenix will be looking down, with that big Golden grin on his face, so happy to see his dad smiling again.