It's been a whole week, but seems even longer. I woke up Saturday night and turned to Gina saying "We need to put Sydney down." It was something about her manner: the way she followed us around but didn't want food or water, the way she barked in the middle of the night for no apparent reason. I made an appointment at the only place open in the area, some emergency vet clinic in Palo Alto. And that morning we went for a walk under the blossoming trees, one last time. Nate seemed so proud to carry the leash, and Julie gave her lots of hugs as usual. Gina dropped the kids off at her mom's, and we met at the clinic to put her down. What a hard thing to do. At the end, she was curled up on a pink blanket and she looked so peaceful. Thank you Sydney: for being a joyous presence during some of my toughest times, for saving the Petaluma house when the hot water pipe burst, for the walks, vacations, and endless tail wags. You are missed.
