HEAVEN AND THE RAINBOW BRIDGE

This year Mother’s Day will be different. I will no doubt be surrounded by family, yet two members of my family will be missing. My 4 year old Goldendoodle Leo, and my Mother. In 2014 less than 6 months apart - these two left this earth and took a huge part of me with them.

While my faith is strong, I still grieve and one morning for whatever reason, I tried desperately to visualize a connection between Heaven and the Rainbow Bridge.

Leo was only 4 years old, the picture of health and in less than 4 days he was gone. My mother was 97 years old, and while I was blessed to have her in my life far longer than most, her presence will be greatly missed because I had her in my life far longer than most.

Private conversations with myself - convincing myself I would be okay - “someday” probably made me curious about a connection between Heaven and this so called “Rainbow Bridge” in the first place. Could there be such a place for pets?

Late November/early December thousands of people debated the interpretation of Pope Francis' words when he consoled a tearful child whose dog died. He said: “One day, we will see our animals again in the eternity of Christ. Paradise is open to all of God's creatures.”

Hey, I was good with that! In fact call me "tickled to doodle" with just the thought.

But I wanted to understand how the two could be linked. I have known about Heaven all my life, and since I became a pet parent 6 years ago with Harley, I’ve grown familiar through social media with the poem "THE RAINBOW BRIDGE".

So on this particular morning, way before dawn, I sat at my computer with the desire to know more about the origin of the story.

The clock on my monitor showed 4:45am. Harley was snoring in the chair behind me as I surfed the net with my friend “wiki” looking to gain additional information about this popular poem.

The story of the Rainbow Bridge tells of a green meadow located "this side of Heaven" (i.e., before one enters into it). Rainbow Bridge is the name of both the meadow and an adjoining bridge connecting it to Heaven. According to the story, when a pet dies, it goes to the meadow, having been restored to perfect health and free of any injuries. The pet runs and plays all day with the others, there is always fresh food and water, and the sun is always shining. However, it is said that while the pet is at peace and happy, they miss their owner who had to be left behind on Earth. When their owner dies, they come across the Rainbow Bridge. It is at that moment that their pet stops what they are doing and sniffs at the air and looks into the distance where they see their beloved owner. Excited, they run as fast as they can until they are in their owner's arms, licking their face in joy while their owner looks into the eyes of their pet who was absent on Earth, but never absent in their heart. Then side by side, they cross the Rainbow Bridge together into Heaven, never again to be separated.

So as my first Mother’s Day without these two loved ones draws near, I find great comfort in this story behind the poem. My tears are now mixed with a smile on my face and wonderful memories as I look at photos of my mom (whom by the way was never very fond of dogs until she met mine!) and Leo.

She adored Leo as a puppy...

He was clumsy and awkward but oh so gentle and loving with her…

I believe Leo knows it’s “ok” to “sniff the air” and run as fast as he can to my mom…

She was never his owner - but she is a part of me and I know in my heart that is good enough for him. Side by side they can cross the Rainbow Bridge together into Heaven, and I'm okay believing when the time comes, they will both come back for me…

Mother's Day is the time to express love and gratitude to that special someone who has loved you like a Mother. If you or someone you know has had that special Mother relationship with a pet (past or present) PetPrint 3D would like to honor you/her this Mothers Day. We've asked Groovy Goldendoodles to host a contest and the winner will receive a free 3D model of their pet from PetPrint 3D. Please visit www.groovygoldendoodles.com for full details. Contest begins today (April 24th) and concludes on Wednesday (May 6th). Winner will be announced on Friday (May 8th).

Cathy C. Bennett is an online publicist and Chief Doodle Mom of two Goldendoodles - Harley and now little Jax. Read all about the antics and adventures of these two along with information about these incredible hybrid dogs at www.groovygoldendoodles.com

@GGoldendoodles

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