Dear Henry by The Pioneer Woman

I posted these photos on Instagram over the weekend, but love them so much I wanted to share them here too. This is our newest addition, Henry, as I was squawking and cawing and meowing and woof-ing, and otherwise trying everything I could think of to get him to tilt his head.

Nothing. Not a thing.

 
 
Guess what made him tilt his head? “Moooooooooooo.” Yep, a cow. Even as a pup, he’s showing signs that he’s a ranch dog through and through!

Which brings me to the bittersweet part. Even as I was preparing this post about sweet little Henry, I was reminded that Charlie died one year ago today. I wrote about it here. I can’t believe it’s been a whole year, as I still feel those doggie-related tears of loss so acutely. But then I’m taken to an even harder place as I realize that we lost my nephew last year just after Charlie died, and that date will be coming up very soon. (You can read that post here. I can’t bring myself to read that one again, at least not right now.) And while one can’t even begin to compare one loss (a beloved pet) to the other (a beloved nephew), the grief and tears are still (and will probably always be) tied up together in one painful season.

And so much has happened since then—goodness gracious. Okay, I take it back: I can believe it’s been a year. It seems like longer than that in some ways!

So I think I’ll just revel in and be thankful for today.

(Today is a good place to be sometimes.)