the // MESSAGE // is clear...

hey there show&TELL friends. been a bit of a tough, dustyTRAIL for hubby & i. it's never easy losing loved ones... and we experienced a loss recently. our girl, lucy... our sweet dal that we rescued from a shelter 9+ years ago ... has found her forever home romping around in the clouds above. it really seems like only yesterday that i wrapped her up in my favorite eiderdown one of the first few days we had her. 

 

 

lucy was a very sensitive + shy dog. nothing like our first dalmatian whom a close friend dubbed - "sadie monster". she bounced around like she had springs in her feet. i still giggle @ her clown like antics.

at a time before digital cameras...i snapped this "film shot" of SADIE {seen below}. perhaps you can see that the pic is a bit tatty. well that comes w/ nearly 20 years of carrying in various wallets. and i continue to do so to this day...

 

 

but lucy. oh lucy. she was quiet. camera shy. a lover of those in her "circle". and a bonafide "daddy's girl". that smile {below} is one i will never soon forget. on BOTH their faces.

 

 

it was never a competition for her love, though. she had plenty to go 'round. infact i had this tiny necklace {seen below} made the first month she joined us as she brought SO much love&LAUGHTER into our home.

 

 

it actually hung on one of my "mannis" up til the day we made the difficult decision to say goodbye to her. then i put it on. and i haven't taken it off since. wearing it night & day... somehow i feel a continued connection w/ her having it dangling around my neck. 

that leads me into another "dangling matter" - her collar w/ a vaccination tag on it. while she wore it...we could hear her coming before we saw her.

 

 

then suddenly our home was filled w/ silence. both at the lack of the singSONGS we sang to her. (yes...sang) and then the absence of the "jingle". hubby mentioned it first. that he missed the jingle. i had been thinking it all along. i wanted to do something special w/ her collar + tag. but also needed some time for my heart to mend (a little to start). 

somethings take time. especially in my world where i create by what inspires me...those moments that matter. so when i came across a poem by e.e. cummings (in it's entirety below)...

 

[i carry your heart with me(i carry it in]

BY E. E. CUMMINGS

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in

my heart)i am never without it(anywhere

i go you go,my dear;and whatever is done

by only me is your doing,my darling)

                                                      

i fear no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want

no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)

and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows

higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

 

...i knew i needed to "carry her heart w/ me". in a figurative way that is. so i cut her tag just a bit. to form a "not so perfect" heartSHAPE to get started. 

 

 

that was my first step. and then that heart sat for a couple days. i wasn't forcing the creation on this piece. it had to come naturally as i felt it. i wanted to add the poem to the heart tag...but also didn't want to lose the words originally stamped on it. not that vaccination info is all exciting. but the fact that is was HER tag made it special no matter what content it contained. 

when the time was right to add the "fitting" partial part of the poem... i forged an organic surface on the reverse side & just started stamping away. didn't really have a format. just could visualize that i wanted it random. like the way i tend to be. i ended up with a rustic heart that hung around "as is" for a few days (still healing).

next step was a bracelet crafted from a piece of her leather collar. i've been wanting for a LONG time to get about making some cuffs. so this was a good way to get me tinkering. i studded the holes that once were the "adjustment" for her clasp... and attempted a snap closure that is far from perfect but perfectly good enough for me. 

here's a peek @ everything pulled together ... nearly a week+ in the {MAKIN'}. and despite it's "random" appearance (+ a favorite "blurry" snapshot of our girl)... the message is very clear to me...  

 

 

now completed... i wore it around so happy. happy with the way i felt about the evolution this tag/collar made. happy that i had a piece of lucy to forever treasure ... as i tend to find connection in things that come about the method this did. (moments that matter, like i mentioned). and really tickled that i devised a way... clipping it on a swivel clasp so i could turn her heart over... and carry it w/ me wherever i go. 

finding solace in placing it in the palm of my hand and simply holding it.

 

 

now when it's not being worn... i have it hanging out in the good company of my chalkDOG collection. in a place that i pass by daily & often.

 

 

so even when i am not "carrying" her heart w/ me... i still have the continued joy of knowing i will never be without lucy. she will live on in the very tokens she leaves behind... in our hearts...in our hands... in our fond memories. 

thanks for peeking today. it's these moments that matter that i can't help but share. its a BIG part of my world. and it wouldn't be fulfilling to me to hold all these feelings in. especially when the message is oh so very clear.

so with that... i thank you for letting me [carry MY heart on MY sleeve.]

*

Comments

[Valery]

Oh, Beth, such a beautiful tribute to your girl. I sobbed through your lovely story, and I loved up my Yogi and Daisy afterwards❤️

[Ardee]

I agree with Valery.....such a beautiful tribute....i experienced tears as well....have been in your place....as recently as last summer...pets have such a wonderful way of enriching our lives....seven are at rest in my yard now....hope your beautiful works of art, memories and sharing your story will bring you comfort.....Lucy was so lucky to be in your care for her time here on earth!

[Rene']

What a wonderful way to use her tag. I would love to have something like that from my dog's tags. Your story is beautiful. I have 3 dalmatians in heaven, and one with me that I adopted from the Grand Island NE humane society in November. I too love the jingling of the tags.

[Susanne]

So sorry for your loss. We recently lost our little dog too. What a bittersweet tribute you've made, thanks for sharing such a loving idea.
Susanne.

[Alaina]

Sorry to hear of your loss. Family pets leave such a hole in our hearts when they are gone.

[Last minute lynn]

Lucy was beautiful and she obviously captured your heart. I had the most wonderful Dalmatian, who can never be replaced . I lost her over 25 years ago and I still can't imagine ever finding another dog friend as wonderful as she was. I must say, however, I don't miss the shedding!

[show & TELL . . .]

thanks val for your sweet note and taking the time to share…! hugs to you… beth

[show & TELL . . .]

thank you ardee. i am touched by your kind words and for taking a moment to send my way. thankYOU again my dear girl… beth*

[show & TELL . . .]

hi there miss rene! dals are truly companions beyond measure that love with every fiber of their being. many many thanks for sharing your story and bringing a smile to my face. beth

[show & TELL . . .]

my pleasure susanne! i like to think my creativity flows from moments around me and this was a soothing form of healing. i wore the bracelet today actually and felt close to lucy… happy i could inspire you! thanks for the kind note! beth*

[show & TELL . . .]

so kind of you to write alaina. we like to think lucy was given a happyHOME and she is missed greatly but remembered for the good girl she was. thanks again for your kindness… beth

[show & TELL . . .]

hi there miss lynn! it's been a month since we said goodbye to lucy and though she is missed more than words… i know she is smiling down at us. and yes…i will likely find her little black AND white hairs on our clothes and home for a VERY long time! shedders those dals are! :)

appreciate you taking a moment to share such a nice note! beth

[Linda Lindley]

Thank you for this amazing expression of love for your sweet Lucy. I have just adopted a big, goofy pointing Griffon and so much of your sentiment sounds just like my "Pheebs". It took me 3 years to adopt after loosing a 16 yr old Cocker/Chow, and now I wonder why I waited so long. You are so right about the joy and laughter they bring into our homes.
Have been a fan of yours for a very long time, but this is my first comment. Glad I broke the ice!