To My Oldest and Furriest Friend, Sierra,
First and foremost, let me say how much I miss you each and every single day. You were my first pet, my friend friend, and my first love. You were there the day I was born and every day after that. Knowing that I always had a snuggle buddy around was the best thing to grow up with. You licked up every tear I shed and bolted on every crumb of food I dropped (or didn’t drop as you often pulled food out of my hands). You took care of me as I grew up and never let me feel alone. We had our fair share of photo shoots, walks (which you turned into runs), and our adventures when you’d come to my soccer games and sun bathe while I played.
I remember throwing you birthday parties and making piñatas with dog treats in them. I invited the entire neighborhood (and their dogs) to celebrate you. For your twelfth birthday, I got you a charm for your collar that said “Jessi and Sierra, BFF’s.” I still have that charm and wear it on a chain whenever I need a little extra love or confidence to get through the day. You were always the best guard dog, letting us know when a neighbor, mail man, squirrel, or leaf passed by our lawn. You made us feel safe.
When you got sick, it seemed like the end of the world. You got older, sicker and consequently meaner, but that never stopped me from loving you constantly and unconditionally. The day we had to put you down was the hardest day of my life. I still remember making sure you were wrapped in your favorite monkey blanket because I wanted you to be cozy until your last breath. The next few months were hard. I was starting a new chapter in my life, a chapter without my life-long best friend, and I was not ready for the loneliness that came along with that. We found another charm from your collar after you passed away, the one you lost months before you left us. We found it in the snow, and knew you were just stopping by to remind us that you’re still here and are always looking over all of us.
I’m still convinced that pieces of you are reincarnated into our newest dog, and I know you would have liked her. She licks my tears just like you did; I think she tries to make you proud and tries to watch over us as well as you did. I always wish that I could hear your bark one last time, let you lick my face the way you loved to one last time, or just sit in your presence and watch your little stubby tail wag one last time.
I hope you’re in doggy heaven, looking down on your family and the new dogs and smiling. We love you more than words can express and you’re thought of and missed every single day. RIP, Sierra.
