Shellie

2009 - 2018

As you already know, we lost our beloved dog Shellie this past Wednesday. We promised to write a post to honor her memory. The best way we know to do so is to share with you the lessons she brought to our lives. I know we are probably not the first to say these things, but I really think they are worthy of repeating. There is a world out there, (including us), that sometimes miss these lessons. I think Shellie would be honored and proud to know that maybe she was able to help even one person have a better life because of what she was able to teach them. This is also helping us heal.

So here we go:

1. Be Fair/Everyone is Equal. One of the things we remember and loved most about Shellie was that she spent her time with everyone in the house equally. If one of us were to fall asleep on the couch and the other had gone on to the bedroom, Shellie would make sure to go sleep with one, then later would get up and go sleep with the other. When it was just Mandi and I in the house, she split her time between the two of us. When Mandi’s mom came to live with us, she spent her time equally with all three of us. She saw everyone as equals and worthy of her time and attention. I think there is a bigger picture here, and we can all learn to treat others fairly and equally, no matter our differences.

2. Be Together! If Mandi and I had gone to sleep in separate rooms, Shellie would always cry to one of us to get up and go be with the other. Whenever we were together, Shellie would always want to be right with us, no matter where we were, she was right there in the middle! Life is too short not to spend our quality time with those we love. If there is anything separating you and those you love, we beg you to do anything in your power to resolve those and break down whatever walls you may have up. It took a dog to teach us this lesson, and we are grateful that God gave us his spirit in our dog.

3. Be Grateful/Say “Thank you”. We understood as dog owners that it was simply our responsibility to feed our dog. We never expected a “thank you” for just doing what we signed up to do as a pet owner. But Shellie saw things differently. Whenever she would get done eating, she always came straight back to us, and licked our face to say “thank you”. She was very intentional about this. She never took for granted the little things. I think there is a lot to be learned here. How many times do we just expect others to do what they’ve always done? How many times do we really let people know that we appreciate them and the things they do? Please take time today to notice and say “Thank you” to someone!

4. Be held by your master. Sometimes when a storm would come, or there was an uneasy feeling (like 4th of July Fireworks), Shellie would come close to us and want to be held and reassured that everything was ok. Storms in our lives will come, we will be fearful, we will be unsure, and it is ok to just be held by our Heavenly Master. We believe He wants nothing more than for us to allow Him the chance to do this for us. So often we think we must do it on our own, but we cannot possibly do it alone.

5. Everyone is a friend. Oh if we could all just learn this! Shellie never saw anyone or any other animal as an enemy. She just wanted to play with them as friends. There wasn’t a mean bone in her body. She saw everyone as a friend. We as humans are failing at this miserably and allowing hate to drive us. If it takes a dog to make us realize it, then so be it, but things need to change!

6. Be in the presence of the sun/Son. Shellie showed us how to just be patient and sit in in the sun. She loved so much sitting in the sun on the back porch with her “Granger” (Mandi’s mom) just soaking up all the rays. She taught us that it is OK just to be in the presence of the Son and just soak up His glory. Sometimes we got too busy doing things, and Shellie was asking for our attention. Sometimes that happens with us and God. He is right there, just asking for us to spend time with Him. Don’t be too busy!

7. Love unconditionally! Shellie just wanted to love you, and to be loved in return. I have heard it said that dogs are the only animals that will love you more than they love themselves. Shellie forgave us of those times that we were a little impatient and didn’t treat her as well as we should. Not only did she forgive, she forgot, like it never happened. We would do very well to take this lesson from our canine friends, because we don’t seem to be as good at it. God loves us unconditionally. I am so glad He shows us his character thru the way He has blessed us with a dog that reflects how He loves! I also don’t think it is simply a coincidence that God lent the three letters of his own name (at least in the English language) to make the word “dog.”

We know this post has been a little bit long. We have had a lot to think about and reflect on these last few days. I really think Shellie wanted us to learn and know these things, and she would want us to pass it along to you.

We will remember her in our hearts. She is well now, running and playing. One day we know she will be running up God’s driveway to bark at Him to let him know “My mom and dad are coming! Woohoo!”