The day Timmy came into my life I didn’t want him. I had lost my Lhasa Apso five years earlier and my heart was not ready when the phone rang on a warm summer morning and my neighbor said the same words she had said a few years before. There is a stray dog in front of our house, will you look at him?
Fate has a different timing than our heart. I tried to give Timmy, who was the same color and size as my Lhasa Apso, to the humane society. They didn’t take him. I tried to give Timmy to our neighbors, they said, “We can feed him and give him shelter, but he wants you.”
Once I succumbed to fate, I took Timmy to the vet because he continued to walk into our pool. The vet’s diagnosis, “This dog is 95% blind and about 13 or 14 years old.” My question, “How old do Fox Terrier Lhasa Mix dogs get?” he answered with a laugh, “13 or 14!
That was 7 years ago. At the age of 20+, having been blind and completely deaf for many years, Timmy is getting ready to leave me. He stopped eating. But he seems to be waiting for something for me to do. So here it is:
The 10 life lessons taught to me by my 20+ year-old Timmy
1. Love is…
Love is when you can break through someone’s shield and reach into the deepest part of a heart.
Love is when you can leave your own needs behind and take care of someone else’s needs.
Love is when you don’t look at the outside, but the inside.
Love is when you get excited because you know who will come to the door.
Love is what I feel, not what I cannot hear or see.
Love is when everything fails, someone will be there.
Love is when the more you give the more you have.
Love is when it is my time, you can let me go
Love is – the legacy I leave behind.
2. Life is…
Life is when its foundation is love.
Life is when you can go to the bathroom at a regular time.
Life is when you get food at a regular time.
Life is when you experience structure, routine, and accomplishments.
Life is when someone gently brushes or touches you.
Life is when someone pays attention to you.
Life is when, at times, someone can focus on you.
Life is when you can oversee the lack of structure at some times.
Life is when you have a passion for something that grounds you.
Life is – what you celebrate after I am gone.
3. Light is…
Light is when someone else can be your eyes.
Light is when it is stronger on the inside than the outside.
Light is when you can feel it, not see it.
4. Dreams are…
Dreams are when you can see even though you are blind.
Dreams are when you can trust even though no one is there.
Dreams are when your senses are free.
Dreams are when you can run, smell, fly, or move while you are still.
Dreams are what you cannot do while you are awake.
5. Sleep is…
Sleep is when you are surrounded with love, life, and light.
Sleep is when you can dream.
Sleep is when you can feel safe.
Sleep is when you can choose your spot.
Sleep is when you are not alone.
Sleep is when you don’t have to worry if there will be a tomorrow.
6. Food is…
Healthy food is when you can eat what is good for you, not what someone else says is good for you.
The right amount of food is when you can stop even though you could eat one more bite.
Good food is what I can smell or taste, not see.
Food is for the body and the soul.
Delicious food is when you can steal it from someone else.
7. A Walk is…
A walk is when you are one with the wind, the sun, and the rain.
A walk is when you don’t have to pay attention.
A walk is when you can listen to what is on the inside, not the outside.
A walk is when you can stop and smell.
A walk is when you are not walking.
8. Patience is…
Patience is when I can trust that what I need will come.
Patience is when change takes time.
Patience is when things go slow.
Patience is when you hold me for a long, long time.
Patience is when we know the end but we don’t rush there.
9. Purpose of life
The purpose of life is to be able to be who we are meant to be.
The purpose of life is to let others be who they are meant to be.
The purpose of life is to belong to someone, something, or others.
The purpose of life is to live your days with love, light, dreams, sleep, food, and a regular daily walk.
The purpose of life – is to love and be loved.
10. Sometimes we all need a guardian angel.
When we are young, we revolve around the world. When we are old, the world should revolve around us. And in between, we all need a guardian angel.
Just because we don’t see our guardian angels doesn’t mean that they are not there.
A guardian angel comes in many forms.
There is a time to say ‘hello’ and there is a time to say ‘good-bye’.
A guardian angel is what I am praying for tonight. My prayer is that my little Timmy can go from my loving heart into the loving light. As it is time for me to say good-bye to my angel of the past seven years, I raise my hands to heaven and pray- that we’ll be back together some day.
Timmy died peacefully at home embraced by my love on Saturday 8/11/2012 at 8 p.m. At 11:30 p.m., I saw, for the first time ever in my life – a shooting star.
More from Jasmine Thomas:
My Near-Death Experience: The After-Life and What to Expect
My Near-Death Experience: Is There a Concept of Time in the After-life?
My Near-Death Experience: Are There Angels and Can We See Them?
