The littlest tombstone

I have thought often about writing this blog.  I did not write about it when "it" happened but felt that, as part of our lives, it might be a good thing to talk about.

This summer, our sweet Petey, our 14 year old rescue dog, died quite quickly.  We were shocked at how fast he went from being an energetic and happy dog, to the dog he was the day he passed... it was a matter of mere weeks and it left our family deeply saddened.

Our children are 6 and 4.  The oldest "gets" what death and dying are to some degree.  The youngest has a different but equally valid understanding.

So, a couple of weeks ago, when I began on the Beelzebub tombstone, Em, the oldest, asked if he could make a tombstone for Petey.  He had a piece of wood and had an idea of what he wanted it to look like.  At first, I thought it was a morbid thing-- none of our tombstones are about people or animals we know, so this would be a first.  Then my son says to me, "It will be like when we visit Gramma E at her cemetery... I know she is not there either, but it is nice to visit, right Mommy?"

So we sat, side by side, me with my paintbrushes, him with his.  And we painted and talked about Petey and about death.  About Petey and squirrels.  About Petey.

So, it is with a less sad heart that I show you the littlest tombstone that will grace our graveyard this year.  It glows in the dark "because that way Petey can see we love him Momma and made this just for him."

I hope this does not upset anyone.  I try very often to be positive and lighthearted here on CelticMommy.  But this blog is also about our lives and I felt that writing about it would bring a bit of a smile through my tears, the love of my child for his first pet.