When death arrives at your doorstep

My Human has been very sad since she found out last night that a very good friend of her's has only a week, maybe two at most to live. She's sad because she's in San Diego for business and won't be home till Friday and hopes she has a chance to say goodbye.

I never had a chance to meet her friend Elaine. I've just heard about her. I've heard how brave she is, how loving, thoughtful, creative, compassionate and generous she is. Even as she's going through chemo and as cancer spreads throughout her body, she appreciates all she has, loves life, loves her partner, loves her friends, and relishes walks in nature and watching birds. I tell my Human that death isn't something to fear. I think her friend Elaine gets it. I think most of the time my Human gets it. Right now it's just hard for her because she's consumed with regrets ... regrets of not being a better friend to Elaine, not doing this, not doing that ...

I keep telling my Human that her friend Elaine knows she loves her. For my Human's sake I hope she has a chance to say goodbye to Elaine and that her friend makes it till Friday. If not, I hope she knows that spirits have no physical boundaries and that she can say goodbye to Elaine from a hotel room in San Diego to a hospital room in Minnesota.

I told my Human i'd put a picture up of Elaine on my blog and ask for your thoughts and prayers, for Elaine and her family. Even though i've never met her, I feel like i've met her. Her kind, loving nature radiates even from just a photo ...

It's hard to embrace death when it arrives at your doorstep. It's hard to embrace pain. Elaine embraced her cancer and the pain, and to the very end I believe she is embracing death. And in doing so, she embraced life.

Elaine has and will continue to live as a bright star in the hearts of all those lucky enough to have been blessed by her presence.