It happened during Friday's hailstorm.
We don't know how it happened.
We simply know that from one minute to the next,
Gabrielle's back went from being straight
To being hunched in pain,
The arching showing signs of yet another
Probable ruptured disk.
We have her home on steroids and pain medicine.
She is confined to mostly bed rest and bathroom breaks.
As the rupture happened high in her spine,
She has very limited mobility in both back legs.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
Anyone who has ever cared for animals
The way we do in this household
Knows that when one member is down,
The whole energy of the house is affected.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
This has happened before, we remind ourselves.
The last time it happened,
Gabrielle spent a month living at Adalheid's,
Being carried up and down to the backyard,
Relegated only to the first floor of Adalheid's house.
She got better then, we remind ourselves,
Battling back the fears and misgivings.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
O Lord,
Help us not feed into our panic and worry.
Help us properly assess her progress.
Help us make wise decisions regarding her treatment.
Help us help her get better.
But really, Father, what we're asking
Is that you heal Gabrielle.
Creator of all creatures great and small,
Your Breath and Being hold our lives together.
You make us - each of us -
With Your Own Hands.
Use Your Hands now,
And impart healing to the cocker.
We have seen her body heal beautifully,
And quickly, and wonderfully.
Grant that it may be so now, Father.
For her sake
(And ours).
There is a unique joy
In throwing a ball across a backyard
And watching that dog run and pounce on it.
There is a feeling of light and air, wind and freedom,
That accompanies such shenanigans.
There is a rightness in the ball's arc of motion,
And a happiness in the dog's reception of that ball
That can change a rotten day around,
And make a bad mood evaporate.
I have stood in the sunlight with Gabrielle
For over 11 years now,
Throwing balls and sticks and toys,
Watching her run and chase and retrieve and wag.
I have never felt the preciousness of these simple pastimes
As I do now.
Father,
Please,
Heal our Gabrielle,
So she can run in the Arizona sunlight
And chase balls once again...
We don't know how it happened.
We simply know that from one minute to the next,
Gabrielle's back went from being straight
To being hunched in pain,
The arching showing signs of yet another
Probable ruptured disk.
We have her home on steroids and pain medicine.
She is confined to mostly bed rest and bathroom breaks.
As the rupture happened high in her spine,
She has very limited mobility in both back legs.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
Anyone who has ever cared for animals
The way we do in this household
Knows that when one member is down,
The whole energy of the house is affected.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
This has happened before, we remind ourselves.
The last time it happened,
Gabrielle spent a month living at Adalheid's,
Being carried up and down to the backyard,
Relegated only to the first floor of Adalheid's house.
She got better then, we remind ourselves,
Battling back the fears and misgivings.
We are waiting. And praying.
And waiting. And praying.
O Lord,
Help us not feed into our panic and worry.
Help us properly assess her progress.
Help us make wise decisions regarding her treatment.
Help us help her get better.
But really, Father, what we're asking
Is that you heal Gabrielle.
Creator of all creatures great and small,
Your Breath and Being hold our lives together.
You make us - each of us -
With Your Own Hands.
Use Your Hands now,
And impart healing to the cocker.
We have seen her body heal beautifully,
And quickly, and wonderfully.
Grant that it may be so now, Father.
For her sake
(And ours).
There is a unique joy
In throwing a ball across a backyard
And watching that dog run and pounce on it.
There is a feeling of light and air, wind and freedom,
That accompanies such shenanigans.
There is a rightness in the ball's arc of motion,
And a happiness in the dog's reception of that ball
That can change a rotten day around,
And make a bad mood evaporate.
I have stood in the sunlight with Gabrielle
For over 11 years now,
Throwing balls and sticks and toys,
Watching her run and chase and retrieve and wag.
I have never felt the preciousness of these simple pastimes
As I do now.
Father,
Please,
Heal our Gabrielle,
So she can run in the Arizona sunlight
And chase balls once again...
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