Freddie.

I wrote this poem after losing my dog to liver failure due to being diagnosed with diabetes. This poem was the hardest to write because of my love for my dog, who I think about daily and probably always will.

I always knew that Freddie would die when he reached 11 years old because of my past experiences with the number 11 and several coincidences that have occurred.

It doesn’t matter what you get attached to; love unconditionally. The 11-life-path person must experience loss to learn and understand the feelings from the lessons.

He came into my life at ten weeks old; he was a happy little puppy who wouldn’t do as he was told.

And then it was six months, and then it was a year; he made me smile from ear to ear.

I used to take him for really long walks to the countryside, the woods, and the seashore; I know he loved that, I know for sure.

He was lovely and gentle in his sweet way, just give him a ball, and he would play.

And then, at eight years old, he got ill and started to suffer; the advice from the vet was that he would never recover.

And then, at eleven, we returned to the vet; he said those words I wish I could forget.

I took little Freddie all the way, but this time at the vet’s, he would stay.

He’s not coming home, and I’ve got to say goodbye, walking out the door with tears in my eyes.

Goodbye, my friend, now safe in the sky; I will see you someday, as soon as I die.