Video, Photography and A Time to Smile

She hated the outfit, but held it together for one quick photo opportunity!

It's Throwback Thursday and at the risk of sending some of you screaming at me for writing another post about Molly the Wonder Dog, today isn't about any sadness, but a process utterly foreign to me.

While I've experienced the loss of friends and family over the years, most of the time it was because of old age. I never had a dog from puppy through adulthood. Having Molly by my side for over 13 years left a void I've never experienced.

It was this video that got me smiling and bringing back some of the great memories. I was in a daily state of sadness. Even though so many of you commented, especially on Facebook, and reminded me the pain I was feeling was normal, that didn't change the misery I felt at letting Molly go.

Looking back through old photographs and files; I came across this video. It's been in my private channel on YouTube for a few years now, but just too much fun not to share.  
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Here's the backstory on the video:

Molly grew up in California. When we moved to Ohio in April of 2009 her first winter soon followed. She loved chasing tennis balls, and a little snow wasn't going to stop her.  She was only four years old in the video. Up until the day before I lost her two weeks ago at almost 14, she was still chasing balls.

This was one of my first videos with a little FLIP camera, and the music was in the selection of what they offered for free use at the time. While the video will never win any awards for production values, it's a winner for making me smile. She never misses a ball, no matter how deep it's buried in the snow, and her tail never misses a beat of the music!

Do I still hurt and grieve? Absolutely, but I'm amazed at how many of you have shared your own stories about your pets. It's that unconditional love they share with us every minute of every day, and when they're gone, it leaves a monstrous hole.

​The bottom line is just like all of you; I'm work in progress. It's a horrible experience to lose a pet, but it would be far worse if they weren't in our lives at all.

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