Goodbye Dear, Sweet, Wonderful Monty.

Last night, I lost one of my dearest friends. He hadn't been the same goofy, curious boy for quite a long, long time. And though, it was his time to go, the loss hurts so deeply that I don't know if it will ever go away.

I have been trying to heed the advice I recently gave some friends, "remember the joy he brought in his life, not the sadness of his passing." In the dawn of this first day without Monty, it's hard to think of anything but how much I miss him and how much it stung to feel the life drift from his body. But I have so many wonderful memories of this most special dog and one that stands out as a testament to his profound sensitivity and empathy was when I was laid up with one broken ankle and one sprained one in the mountains of Montana about 6 years ago. He couldn't seem to understand why I had gone from the girl who took him running through the snow in the mornings, to the girl who was unable to walk to the bathroom on her own. He was so sad and it was all he could do to comfort me. He finally figured it out. He jumped up on the couch with me and laid his long, lean body between my legs and propped his funny, funny face on my shin. He laid there for what seemed like forever... days, weeks. He didn't want to be anywhere else. Even when his friend, my dog Otis, was barking to go for a run, Monty looked at him as if none of that mattered in light of the job he had to do. He was so sweet and so giving.

Perhaps, it was his giving nature that led him to me to end his struggle with the tumor that was pushing against his little brain. I believe that he came to me as a gift, in his final days, to both say goodbye and give me the opportunity to struggle with the choice to put him down and the actual putting down. Without Monty, the first time for me would have been with Otis, the closest friend I have. Monty didn't want that. He wanted me to know the feeling, so I would be better prepared. I am so grateful to him for that. And for everything he brought to my life over the last nine plus years.

I love you, Monty, and I always will. For the rest of my life, I will miss you.