Teenage Trooper
“BARNEGAT GIRL”
10/15/97 – 9/1/10 R.I.P.
- “The BEST Golden Retriever Girl In The Whole World”
We are in deep sadness for having lost a dear family member and great friend and companion today.
It’s never a good time for letting go. This is especially true for the one who’s been the loyalest, sweetest, and most fun-loving guardian of our lives for 13 years. But today, Barnegat was called to a higher place. Her body simply couldn’t survive her permanent puppy mindset any longer.
She was a trooper through and through. No animal on earth could possibly have had more heart than Barnegat Girl. She protected. She inspired. She mended fences. She stood tall in troubled waters. Her smile was real and contagious.
She loved the cold weather and making “dog-angel” imprints in the snow. When we brought her home, it was in one hand; she was the size of a football. Today, as she left us, her 95 pounds of upbeat spirit will live on.
Barnegat had taken us through three moves to three different homes in two different states and she outlived two wonderful male cocker spaniels “Sam” and “Tuckerton” who each thought she was their big sister.
Barnegat loved chasing baseballs and tennis balls and swimming in the ocean –even in the winter ice and snow.
She bounded at the slightest beckoning. And would rise to any occasion regardless of the circumstances.
The proof of her disposition was proven by hundreds of tugging, pulling children over the years that she would reward with licks again and again.
Her travels took her to the mountains and the ocean coasts of Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and the mountains of Vermont, North Carolina, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, plus the coast and farmlands of Delaware . . . and –of course– untold lakes, rivers, streams, lagoons, and creeks all along the way.
Yes, she was a “privileged child,” but never failed to earn her keep, or be loving and attentive to all who entered her life.
God Bless You, Barnegat Girl, and thank you for 13 years of unsolicited love and trust and the kind of friendship that all on Earth should strive to equal.
It’s lonesome under my desk . . . but YOU, sweet girl, will never be forgotten.
www.TWWsells.com or 302.933.0116 or Hal@BusinessWorks.US
Barnegat was a very very special dog who meant a lot to me, and everyone. I love her a lot and feel very lucky to have known her.
I love you and Grandma so much.
Love,
Talley
Thank you Talley. And YOU were very special to Barnegat as well. We love you too. You are the best!
One of the things I shall ask God when I am in Heaven is why didn’t He allow more years of life on earth for our dearly loved, four-legged, loyal companions who demonstrate God’s agape (unconditional) love toward us every day. I am glad he gave you both Barnegat and gave both of you to Barnegat.
Thanks for your kind comments and thoughts, Bonnie. Kathy and I appreciate your sensitivity and your friendship (and your family’s). I am grateful for your visit here and for taking the time to comment. And, yes, we shall always be grateful for Barnegat. Best as always – Hal
I have tears in my eyes after reading (& understanding) the love you have for Barnegat. People that have never had a loyal 4 legged friend can’t understand the emptiness. We still have Buddha & being 11 I wonder how many years I will be blessed with his companionship. I am sorry for your loss.
Thank you Pam. The emptiness is indeed the hardest part. We wish you continued long health with Buddha… his sweet disposition speaks well of yours and Dean’s attentions to him. We appreciate the warm thoughts. Hal
[…] golden retriever who hung out there for 13 years before heading off to be with the others ahead of Barnegat, it’s been a very long time since Kathy and I have been confronted with raising a baby puppy. […]