This week my family experienced another great lesson in saying good-bye.
After nearly sixteen years together we had to bid farewell to our 'first child' our Siberian Husky. Indulge me as I write with a heavy heart today...
For several years we had been watching our beautiful Nakina gradually slow down and in the past year, watching each day age her by a month. It has recently been a rapid decline and we were faced with the question whether we were keeping her around for ourselves or was she actually still enjoying life. Clearly this past week it was obvious that the her fun in life was no longer.
All sadness and tears aside, looking back I have to say that this dog who was much more like a cat in her aloof and feline ways, and she was in fact a great teacher to me believe it or not.
When we first got her she was this little ball of fur that was cheeky, she made sport of biting me and she would not let us ever, ever cuddle her unless she was in the mood that was a rare occasion. Her name was Nakina. She was beyond beautiful and she was quite a bitch when she felt like it. :) She pranced around like she owned the place and she was agility rivalled that of those in the Circ. She could and would run like the wind and do back flips off the backs of other dogs. She truly was a gymnist. She also knew she was beautiful and she knew how to play the boys... especially one boy... my husband.
I often referred to 'Kina as 'The Other Woman'. She had my husband wrapped around her finger. In his eyes, from the day we got her, she could do no wrong. She knew it too. She would flaunt her power over him in front of me every chance she got. She had swagger, serious swagger.
The lessons she brought were simple. She never settled for less than what she was after. Whether it was walk, a scratch or a face full of love... she got it, in her time, on time and for a perfect amount of time.
Nakina was protective of her space. She made time for herself, she had her space and she protected it. She would not compromise what she felt was right for her in any given moment and would defend her choices and was vocal about it. She would literally stamp her feet and talk to you while doing it. She would tell you right off if you didn't listen to her.
'Kina taught me how to be selfless. I cannot tell you how many trips to the island I have missed and missed seeing my girls over there because I had this dog to care for. I have had this dog since I was 23 years old. That may sound irrelevant but those are prime years of bonding for a woman. I literally used to have to miss girls trips... ask my best friends... they'll back me on this... that feline of a dog taught me to get over myself and my own needs in a hurry.
Honestly, she taught me how to love on a level a didn't know I had in me at that young age. She showed me that there was more to life than just me... in the same way my children did but on a different scale. She prepared me for motherhood. Sounds funny but she truly did. I cannot tell you what it was like to have my first child and bring her home to meet Kina. From the first moment they met, Nakina would stand between anyone and my daughter when they came to meet her. She acted like another mother for my daughter the way she protected her. I never worried as some people do when they bring babies home to meet their animals. You see, Kina was never an animal to us. She was a teacher, a protector and a privilege to have as a part of our family. She was a privilege.
Finally, she has taught my children how to say good-bye. Saying good-bye is never easy, especially when you are trying to teach young children about death. But when you have 16 years with someone, and they have taught you as much as Nakina has taught and given to us, it is easy to step aside and appreciate all that we shared and to be able to give her the gift of peace. Pain free, challenge free, peace. She deserves to not have to suffer. She deserved a loving and peaceful passing, and after giving all of us so much love and many life lessons, it was our turn to bless her with love and light as she transitioned.
Always loved, never forgotten. Rest in Peace our sweet Princess Kina.
Love & Light,
t.
After nearly sixteen years together we had to bid farewell to our 'first child' our Siberian Husky. Indulge me as I write with a heavy heart today...
For several years we had been watching our beautiful Nakina gradually slow down and in the past year, watching each day age her by a month. It has recently been a rapid decline and we were faced with the question whether we were keeping her around for ourselves or was she actually still enjoying life. Clearly this past week it was obvious that the her fun in life was no longer.
All sadness and tears aside, looking back I have to say that this dog who was much more like a cat in her aloof and feline ways, and she was in fact a great teacher to me believe it or not.
When we first got her she was this little ball of fur that was cheeky, she made sport of biting me and she would not let us ever, ever cuddle her unless she was in the mood that was a rare occasion. Her name was Nakina. She was beyond beautiful and she was quite a bitch when she felt like it. :) She pranced around like she owned the place and she was agility rivalled that of those in the Circ. She could and would run like the wind and do back flips off the backs of other dogs. She truly was a gymnist. She also knew she was beautiful and she knew how to play the boys... especially one boy... my husband.
I often referred to 'Kina as 'The Other Woman'. She had my husband wrapped around her finger. In his eyes, from the day we got her, she could do no wrong. She knew it too. She would flaunt her power over him in front of me every chance she got. She had swagger, serious swagger.
The lessons she brought were simple. She never settled for less than what she was after. Whether it was walk, a scratch or a face full of love... she got it, in her time, on time and for a perfect amount of time.
Nakina was protective of her space. She made time for herself, she had her space and she protected it. She would not compromise what she felt was right for her in any given moment and would defend her choices and was vocal about it. She would literally stamp her feet and talk to you while doing it. She would tell you right off if you didn't listen to her.
'Kina taught me how to be selfless. I cannot tell you how many trips to the island I have missed and missed seeing my girls over there because I had this dog to care for. I have had this dog since I was 23 years old. That may sound irrelevant but those are prime years of bonding for a woman. I literally used to have to miss girls trips... ask my best friends... they'll back me on this... that feline of a dog taught me to get over myself and my own needs in a hurry.
Honestly, she taught me how to love on a level a didn't know I had in me at that young age. She showed me that there was more to life than just me... in the same way my children did but on a different scale. She prepared me for motherhood. Sounds funny but she truly did. I cannot tell you what it was like to have my first child and bring her home to meet Kina. From the first moment they met, Nakina would stand between anyone and my daughter when they came to meet her. She acted like another mother for my daughter the way she protected her. I never worried as some people do when they bring babies home to meet their animals. You see, Kina was never an animal to us. She was a teacher, a protector and a privilege to have as a part of our family. She was a privilege.
Finally, she has taught my children how to say good-bye. Saying good-bye is never easy, especially when you are trying to teach young children about death. But when you have 16 years with someone, and they have taught you as much as Nakina has taught and given to us, it is easy to step aside and appreciate all that we shared and to be able to give her the gift of peace. Pain free, challenge free, peace. She deserves to not have to suffer. She deserved a loving and peaceful passing, and after giving all of us so much love and many life lessons, it was our turn to bless her with love and light as she transitioned.
Always loved, never forgotten. Rest in Peace our sweet Princess Kina.
Love & Light,
t.
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