Goodbye old friend

It is with a very, very heavy heart that I write this, because today we lost a dear, sweet soul in my parents' dog, Max. 

Max joined our family back in 1998 at around six weeks old.  He was the dictionary definition of a labrador retriever - clumsy, rambunctious and destructive.  I remember him being a handful, but I had just graduated from college and was not around much to watch many of his antics.  The stories, however, told it all.  He chewed up furniture.  He escaped from his pen and ran wild throughout town.  He terrorized visitors to the lake my folks live by.  He could rip a can of dog food in half in a single swipe.  He broke through screen doors.  And the list could go on.  If you've read the book Marley & Me, or at least seen the movie, you can understand just about exactly what Max was like. 

Over the years I started to say that Max was my brother, so naturally when Rocky came along, Max became "Uncle Max".  Rocky and Max met within minutes of our bringing Rocky into our lives.  I'll never forget that Max was definitely not impressed with the new four legged friend on the block, and his opinion of Rock never really seemed to change much over time.  But it was clear that Rocky adored Max, and Max took the puppy attacks from Rock like any great uncle would.  Max would walk, Rocky would run circles around him.  Max would swim for a ball or stick, Rocky would beat him and steal it.  Max would lay down, Rocky would jump on his head.  They had the best relationship an old dog and a puppy could probably ever have. 

But there are also other reasons why you can relate if you know the story of Marley & Me.  You can relate to the joy that Max brought to all of us, even in his most frustrating times.  You can relate to the laughter we all shared when recalling one of his latest capers.  And you can relate to the grief we are feeling today with his passing.  I thought I had never cried so hard over the story of losing a pet as I did reading that book; well, I topped that today. 

The effect a dog can have on your life is almost indescribable.  There is truly, truly no being on earth that lives solely, one hundred percent, whole-heartedly for you.  Not even your own children.  All it takes is your presence to make their day absolutely perfect.  Throw a ball around with them and, well, in their world you are royalty.  Scratch their ears and you might as well have hung the moon. 

That was Max.  Sweet, loving, goofy, ball of entertainment that he was.  I will miss him.

He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog.  You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion.