March 28, 1994- April 4, 2008 R.I.P. MY BELOVED GAMBIT, I WILL ALWAYS MISS YOU. Today, I had to put my dog down after his courageous battle with a severe infection and cancer. It took only a few weeks to bring him down, but in the end, he was still trying to please me. He was a great dog, loyal, loving, ornery, stubborn ,playful, smart, lively, cute, even tempered, friendly to everyone.. Gambit would follow me around the house never letting me out of his sight when I was home. He loved walks and car rides. Would bark at cows, horses, and motorcycles. He loved to chase squirls up trees and bark at other dogs on the other side of our fence when we lived on a conner lot one time. When the kids were in school, he would go with me to pick them up, and he loved that. So did the kids who often came over to pet him. He knew when Pat was coming home and would wait at the back door for that sound of the garage door around 5:45 each day. I knew he was really sick when he didn't do this. He would only play catch with you if you had treats for him at the end, if not you could forget about it. He loved the pizza delivery man especially since he figured he was going to get some of that pizza crust. ( His way of begging was to put his head down and rub up against your legs until you gave him something. Then he would look up at you with those brown eyes while letting the other dog make all the noise. Yes, he had his bad moments too. He was a terrible marker when he got mad at you or if you brought another dog in his domain. He would also run out of the door if we left it open making us go chase him around the neighborhood. Train him we tried not to do this. Terriers have a mind of their own and years of working with him taught him this was wrong but did not stop him from doing this completely given the chance. Oh, he would come home after his excursions if I hadn't caught him first, but I always was afraid he would get hit by a car and suffer a cruel death. This death was so cruel, I thought to myself getting hit by a car might have been less painful for him. Then again, he went peacefully in my arms this morning. Me , holding him for the last time telling him how much I love him. Cradling him that last time, I was thankful I had those final weeks to say goodbye and to let go. Perhaps that is what I should be thankful for in this time. That I got to say goodbye. Sure it was a pet, but like so many loved ones, we often don't get to say goodbye to them before they die. This indeed is a gift from God when we do. So, I will treasure it and thank my Lord for this gift. I really only want to talk about my Gambit today if you all don't mind. Please let me indulge myself here today. I don't feel like talking about food matters today. This is what is on my heart today and probably will for some time. Good night to all.