It was thirteen years ago when Joni and I said goodbye to Hall of Fame canine companion Hannah. She was a unexpected rescued Labrador that God brought into our lives to help us through a challenging season. She inspired the initial book draft of Stay: Lessons My Dogs Taught Me about Life, Loss, and Grace that included stories from another rescued Labrador named Maggie. Here is a chapter from the book remembering sweet Hannah. Hannah loves the morning walk. When she sees me grab my walking shoes, she begins to vibrate with excitement. If the Department of Energy wants to find an untapped green energy source, it should harness Labrador tails. I think Hannah could power a small apartment building when she gets excited and that tail starts oscillating. I love the morning walk as well. It is a time to meditate, pray, listen to good music, and enjoy God’s company. The walk is pretty much the same each day
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I love the Fourth of July. My beloved and I had our first unofficial “date” on an Independence Day celebration in Fort Collins, Colorado many, many, many years ago. We were married twelve months later during the Bicentennial birthday year of America. The holiday also reminds me of the precious gift of freedom we enjoy. A song from Five for Fighting called “Freedom Never Cries” talks about our tendency to take freedom for granted. Writer/singer John Ondrasik writes personal and powerful songs that resonate with me. Ondrasik talked about the song in an interview posted at liveDaily. “It was definitely a statement song that has a point of view. I think it kind of speaks to the fact that, I know at least for myself, we tend to only appreciate things when we need them. Growing up here in the bubble of the United States, we are statistically lucky to be born into this country where freedom, to us, seems natural. We couldn’t imagine anything
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