27/07/2026
It has taken me a month to gather the strength to write this post. Less than a week apart, I lost two of my best friends. Two souls that happened to live in canine bodies. And their absence is leaving a giant gaping hole in my heart. I don’t really have the words to describe it. Maybe that’s because the relationships we have with dogs aren’t based on words. They exist in a space of shared experience, mutual rituals, small gestures. Every day, a million tiny moments remind me of how much their lives were intertwined with mine.
It’s a private pain and I’ve been struggling with whether to share it. But if you’ve been following this page, I’m sure you know how it feels, and I thought you might want to know.
Tiffany fought her battle against lymphoma for over a year and a half. From the day her diagnosis fell, I promised myself to live in the moment. Because it’s impossible to stare at that sword over your head every day. We made a pact. No bad days. And we kept it. She was the embodiment of life. A fiery whirlwind of joy that swept you up in its path until the very last day. And when that day came, just short of her 4th birthday, and the sword finally fell, I didn’t see it coming. Tiffany was a born performer. My muse and my mana.
Less than a month out from her 15th birthday, Gemma followed her through the portal. Her physical strength and abilities had been declining for a while, but her mind was as sharp as ever. That fiercely independent spirit I struggled to understand in her youth now letting me know she was ready to leave. Gemma was a thinker. My teacher and my compass.
I miss them both equally and yet in very different ways. While their mission may be over, their lessons continue to inspire me. So if they still appear in my posts, it’s because rather than mourn the loss, I chose to celebrate their lives.
