The early morning is pitch black with the exception of the digital display on my cable box which shows me that it is exactly 4:10 am. Sloppy, gentle kisses are planted on my face as I hear the thumping of Penny’s tail further coaxing me out of bed as the excitement of a new day begins for us.
I quickly dress and fumble for my flashlight, which I have temporarily misplaced, as we head down the stairs and make our way outside to what is now considered our new world.
The thick air hits me with a prickly hot presence as the sound of hissing sprinklers remind me that they have a job to do too. As we near our first tree, I am acutely aware, that in all this darkness, I can see a beacon of light as my little Penny has managed to pry open the creaky door of my heart once again.
I would be amiss if I told you this was an easy journey. It was anything but that as I kept trying to move forward. On many an occasion, I had missteps, sadness and indeed challenges. I questioned if I would be willing to embrace that inevitable pain again, but I also knew that closing my heart would be a guaranteed recipe for loneliness and the painful absence of unconditional love.
So here we are nearly two years after losing Barney. I am emotionally ready to continue on my path of life. I have done all the hard work to get here. Penny, with those two soulful eyes and that indomitable playful spirit shows her new Mommy what a gift it is to dance in the rapture of new love.