Flowers for Jimmy |
|
Puppy for Jimmy's Garden
We are gathered together to celebrate and honor the life of "canine extraordinaire", JIMMY!!!
What can I say about Jimmy? Where do I start? In his relatively short life - in human years at least - in dog years he was a respectable "older man" - it would seem that he lived MANY lives.
Where was he born? - we really don't know where, AND we don't know WHEN either. We DO know that his second home was on a lake in Connecticut where he was on one hand....happy and carefree, running around the woods and swimming in the water, but, more seriously, on the other hand, was neglected and abused because when we met him, he was underweight and showed signs of mistreatment. Enter - NEVER doubting Thomas. When HE saw Jimmy, he never doubted for a moment that he must rescue him before Jimmy became weak to the point of death. Enter - HEAVEN! Jimmy didn't know it at the time, but he had a "rebirth" in his lifetime and went straight to HEAVEN.....Gert's house in Bellmore, New York. It isn't the house that designates the heavenly realm there, it is the QUEEN of canine love and affection......Jimmy's "mom", Gert.
There, Jimmy came into his own. It's as if he went to "canine college" and graduated Summa Cum Laude!
Gert brought out Jimmy's innate love, dedication, humor, intelligence and devotion. At first, Jimmy was the younger brother to Buddy and Chip, easily finding his place in this canine heaven. When Chip went to REAL heaven, Jimmy was comfort and campanion to Buddy. It would seem that one of God's main purposes for Jimmy was to bring consolation to others. When Buddy joined Chip, Mama Gert was, of course, beside herself with grief, but Jimmy somehow eased that pain and gave her a new purpose in life. Jimmy would share his special talent for loving others with the world.
Over the past many years, he has done just that! Jimmy was known and loved as a certified Pet Therapist...visiting nursing homes and hospitals. The residents would anxiously await his weekly visits of love and kisses. As an Ambassador for Bid-A-Wee, he thrilled so many children and adults alike with his lovable antics. Lon Chaney may have been "The Man of a Thousand Faces", but Jimmy was "The Dog of a Thousand Costumes". In case you think I'm exaggerating, just take a walk through Gert's "Canine Collection of Portraits", and see how many human photos you find on her walls of her house. Another option is to log on to his web-site. Yes, Jimmy is a cyberspace pooch. Check out the pictures on the web and see Jimmy in a multitude of disguises....and he LOVED to wear every one of them! He seemed to KNOW how cute he was and how much people loved to see him dressed up. All of us were always anxious to see which new photo would grace their Chistmas card each year. Oh my, Gert, I just thought of something........of there's ever a winter when you are dogless, will YOU have to dress up and put a picture of YOURSELF on your card??
Jimmy was also a favorite on the Warren Eckstein show and appeared on TV with him several times. But Jimmy's life was not only about work, work, work.....oh no. He was well rewarded - not only by being KING of the castle, but with a special limousine ride into Manhattan each year to see the Rockerfeller Center Christmas tree. I don't think there is another dog EVER who could say that!!
Will we MISS him? Silly question. Of COURSE we will ALL miss him. Our hearts go our to his Mom, Gert, whose life will never be quite the same again. She gave him a world of wonder and joy and he returned the same to her. There are some people who choose to never own an animal because they figure they will outlive their pet and suffer terrible grief when they die. The well-known quote, "It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all" is so true in this case. What would Gert's life have been like without her overwhelming love for her animals? Should she have denied herself SO much happiness and purpose because today was inevitable? If JImmy hadn't brought such an abundance of goodness to her life,...if he HADN'T been such a special friend, then, true, no one would be grieving right now. Oh, but would Gert be willing to give up ONE day of her memories of her beloved boy? Not a chance.....JImmy lives on!..... Only his physical body is no longer here. The essence of which he was - the spirit of this wonderful, talented, loving companion lives on forever. Thank you God for "gifting" us with MEMORY!....And when our memories fail us....well, there's always ALL those PICTURES!!!!
And in closing, let us join together in prayer:
Heavenly God, we stand here together, united in sorrow for the passing of our friend Jimmy. Grief is heavy on our hearts, especially for his devoted Mom, Gert. We ask that you especially wrap your cloak of neverending love around her, and, even as she grieves, bring her some comfort and peace. Although we are truly sad, and will MISS seeing and being with Jimmy, we are, at the same time, joyous in knowing that he is beyond earthly pain and suffering. We are also joyous because he was in our lives - he touched our lives and because of the very specail creation he was, enriched our lives and brought happiness to countless numbers of people. For that, we are forever grateful. Grateful are we also because, as long as any of us lives, Jimmy lives on through our memories. That dog had such SOUL - and that will be with us ALWAYS! May his heavenly soul.....run....prance....fetch......do "cuckoos"....and yes, REST....in peace. AMEN.
(This eulogy was written by Lynn Buttner and typed with love, by Lynn's sister, Jane)
previous page
next page