Free at last!  Yesterday was the last day puppy Katie had to be a cone head!  Last night I took it off and she was SO excited!  She rubbed her ears for a long time and then began to prance around the living room.  She brought her favorite toys to me, and then we played a rousing game of fetch with most of them.  We played until she exhaustedly went off for a nap behind the sofa.

I settled on the sofa to relax and watch some television.  Suddenly something, I don’t know what, trigged memories of my mother’s funeral.  Instantly I was back at the church, watching someone else play the organ Mom had played the week before, seeing the coffin in front of the pulpit as we all spoke.  Long, low, racking sobs emerged, grief held in too long spilled out.

Unseen by me, puppy Katie crept out from behind the sofa, and crawled up onto my chest.  Softly, oh so gently, she reached out a paw, and then gently licked the tears from my face.  Soon I was giggling and hugging her and then she sprang from the sofa and ran for her toys.  We were again engaged in play. 

Such is the love of a puppy.