The time frame around a holiday dedicated to the things we love found my heart bruised, not once, but twice. There weren’t little pink and red hearts gayly floating around in my world on Valentines Day. Instead, I was looking at two huge graves in our pasture while a winter storm blew snow over the freshly heaped up dirt.
I’d be lying if I told you I’m a quick heal. Please forgive me for sharing my grief. I did try to come up with a different topic, one that would be cheery like a gingham tablecloth graced with a bouquet of daisies. Sorry, no can do, its just not in me right now. Truth is, the theme of this article is actually spot on appropriate for people of the soil … farmers & ranchers. I’ve been given a fresh dose of the downside of animal stewardship.
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Suzy 
Kristy 
Cindy 
Christy 
terry 
Maureen 
Ann 
Carol Norwood 
Ruth 
Dana 
bonnie ellis 
LaJuan Lee 
Adrienne 
meredith 
Mary Carl 
Kim Denn 
Phyllis Y 
Jan 
Louise Marie 
Joan 
Lloyd Patten 
Diane Van Horn 
Jan 
Janet 
Phyllis Lindblade 
Victoria 
Rene Foust 
Margaret 
Theresa Bondurant 
Amy I 
What a lovely tribute to some beautiful friends……
My heart aches for you. What a beautiful creature and a touching story. How lucky to have had two wonderful souls in your life. God Bless you, until you meet again.
I remember Apple Pi Dolly, and I am so sorry for your loss. Your enormous loss. And your tribute simply couldn’t have been better Shery.
Love ya gal.
Oh Shery … Yet another beautiful tribute to your beloved horse. I am SO sorry for your double loss but you have a wonderful attitude and with time, your aching heart will heal. Your tribute made me cry. God Bless … Carol
Well, I feel your pain and have never figured out how these things go in groups. The first horse I had to put down was Miss Tessa. She ended up with a very large inoperable tumor on her nasal passage. She did not want to go when she was given her injection. She kept looking up at me. I told her "It’s ok Miss Tessa, you can go".
Her calling in life was as we discovered was to be a lesson horse for the small children. The mothers all marvelled that when a child fell off Tessa, she would stop and stand until she could figure out exactly where the child had landed. When she was gone, my trainer tried another horse for lessons, but the children just cried and said that they wanted Miss Tessa. I believe that our animals especially horses are some of our best teachers about life.
I feel your pain. I am so blessed that you choose to share your feelings with us. I know it was hard. I too have to believe that there is a Rainbow Bridge. It would be to hard not to believe.
Thank you for sharing Dolly’s life and death, you were a good friend to both Dolly and Bluebelle – yes joy joy joy down in my heart – because of your beautiful writing. And Apple looks like she will be another good friend. God Bless
P.S. thanks farmgirl friends for being there for Shery.
OH Sherry, I am SO sorry. You & Bluebell have been in my thoughts lately; now I know why… your writings are so interesting, emotional, & filled with LOVE. From one animal lover to another; Prayers are with you, jonna
What a wonderful love story.
I just read your words to my husband, who doesnt care much for horses,
but he left the room in tears.
We know too well of saying good-bye to our old critters that have shared our lives and laps thru our 38 yrs. together, and every time we lose one, it is just
as hard each time, never gets any easier.
Not too long ago, we said good-bye to our beloved Collie, the dog I had dreamed of since I was a child watching Lassie, and when I put him on the
bed of the truck, I told him "good-bye for now, but wait for me in heaven",
and I know he is there with all the rest, with their little angel wings on!
Blessings to you, thank you for sharing your love in your post!
Hugs from the Ozarks, Diana
Oh Shery,
There just aren’t words to convey to you how very sorry I am. What a terrible blow to lose both your dear ones so close to one another. But I believe you are right that she couldn’t imagine living without her friend. I once again send you love and warm wishes and an understanding hug. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
So sorry for your loss, not just once but twice, that is really so hard. prayers for you and I love your gratitude attitude!
While I have only raised 4 Old English sheep Dogs I have lost them all. Your heart is in threads at each loss. It’s hard to tell people who don’t know that kind of love how wonderful it is. you are in my thoughts and prayers
May you feel God’s Arms of Love around you, Shery. He is taking good care of Bluebelle and Dolly til you meet again. You have beautiful memories to cherish until then….
Great tribute to some fine animal friends….sigh…ya gotta quit makin’ my eyes leak though…. (:
What a lovely and touching tribute to your two dear "soul mates". I loved the pictures also. There is something in an animals eyes that tells you of their soul. I know your heart is broken, as that is the way we are made. It makes us human, in a good way. Hugs to you during this time. Your tears and words have broken, but lifted my heart. Your heart is open and dear and will always draw other kindred hearts to you. Blessings.
Sherry: I am crying with you, I know what a good horse, best friend, worker and pal can mean to you. But I am laughing with you too. That last sign about shrinking in the dryer is a hoot! God Bless and live free with your new steed.
Your story touched my heart so deeply I found myself sitting here reading your story about Your Dolly with tears flowing…..tears of sadness as I can imagine how much you will miss her and tears of joy that her heart is no longer breaking for the loss of her best friend. Thank you for sharing your beautiful story and the wonderful celebration of Dolly’s life and memories
Oh Sheri, My heart goes out to you. I am writing this with tears in my eyes. Although I have never owned or been close to a horse, I have had other animals who have been dear to me and my family. And when you lose one it is just like a part of your heart being torn out, as you said. How wonderful for you to have so many memories and photos of those precious days with your two amazing horses! Thank you for sharing both your joy and pain with us. God bless and keep the faith!
Farewell to your sweet sweet companion. My heart breaks for you. I do not have horses but I do have dogs that are like part of the family. So I know how much our four legged friends mean to us. I am so glad you have Apple to carry on. Be Blessed.
Wow…what a wonderful story! I have to agree that Morgan horses are very special. My daughter had an old style Morgan from New England who was as smart as a whip and as sweet as pie. I am so glad that you are getting to raise another one. Thank you for sharing the promise that we will get to see our furry friends in Heaven some day. They are like family, and our God knows the desires of our heart.
So beautiful. As I read this my beloved Jersey cow who calved on Valentines day, a sweet little girl calf named Cinnamon, is being tested for BLV. I pray it comes back negative for her and for her calf. I’m not ready to let her go.
I am so moved by your sharing over these past few weeks. You give me courage.
Love,
Terces
Thank you for sharing your most beautiful story of love. Peace
Shery, I am so sorry for your double loss!! This is a beautiful tribute to your wonderful Dolly. My heart aches for you and tears are rolling down my cheek. Someday I will have to go thru losing my horses too, however I hope it won’t be for quite some time. They are now 7 & 8 years old. Will be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.
Apple looks like a dandy. Look forward to all of the special times that you two will have together.
Soft hugs to you. Love reading your post each and every one.
I so believe there will be animals in heaven, I will be waiting for my sweet rosebud (my dog)and my sweet horse holly, they were my very best friends.
Donna
I was such a crying mess I wasn’t able to comment before. I am so deeply sorry for your loss. Bluebelle and Dolly were such a joy to read about and the pictures of them are beautiful. Our animals really grab a hold of our heart and become a part of us. Thank you, God for the time you had with them and the joy they brought to you. Thank you for sharing and letting us into your heart as well. Many future blessings to you and your family.
Once again, dear Shery, you have outdone yourself. I wanted to let you know that I saved a couple of ‘Dolly Cam’ pictures on my computer from one of your previous blogs. I ran across them the other day and as always, they made me smile. How much closer to heaven can you get, than spending time with your dear friend?
Large hugs to you!
I am so sorry for your loss. It’s been almost fifteen years since I lost my once in a lifetime horse Traveler. I still miss him. Now I have Sassafras Fizz (Sassy, which she is) and we’re learning to be best friends.
We don’t replace our once in a lifetime horse, we find a new friend who is a different best friend and realize our hearts are big enough to have more than one in a lifetime.
Hugs to you Shery.
Shery, as I read about your loss of Bluebelle, then the loss of beloved Dolly, I have the biggest lump in my throat and tears streaming down my face wanting to give you the biggest ‘Hug" ever. It is such a hard loss (but the twice), we go on remembering the wonderful joy they brought to us in the time they graced us in their life time. Warm embrace to you!
I put off reading this…I instinctively knew it would bring me to tears. And it did. I don’t have a horse, but if I did, I would like one like Dolly. I don’t live on a ranch, but I lived in Montana 10 years. I have lost a person who was a "Dolly" to me, who helped me grow up, who gave me children, who was always intuitively understanding of my nature, and pushing me towards another horizon. He died four years ago, after a marriage that lasted 46 years. He was adventurous, and would lift his head to any new challenge, unafraid, rather raising his head to ‘catch the wind’. We moved often, always a new adventure. He died quickly, after having taken me to dinner, and to shop for a Valentine gift for me. Just sat down in his chair, said call 911, and slumped over, gone! No warning! He always was unselfish, putting other’s needs before his own. I sense this is true in your Dolly. I grieve with you……and I know the challenges will come. They have for me, and for anyone who suffers during loss. But, allow me to say, you have written a beautiful grief letter. The best I have ever read. One line stands out for me, for you, (with the gifted mentor we learned to love so deeply)…(whether animal or human)…."99% of the wealth of my horse did not come into play until she was in her element"!!! This is my lesson from your piece, and one it is for all alive, still breathing. Cast your face to the headwind, and gallop at full speed! Thank you Sherry for writing this, for sharing with us your life and stories. Indeed, a deep blessing for me.
Such a beautiful story. Last year I lost what I call my heart dog. A dog that helped me though the unexpected passing of my sister. Her beautiful spirit was there when I needed her to come and rest her head on my lap when my heart was breaking. Just a short time after my sister passed away my beautiful Bella became ill and one month to the day of diagnosis she was gone. My heart broke. Just recently, last month, my husband of 40 years suddenly passed away. My heart is broken once again. We planned a trip out west which now we will never to do. I have a void in my heart that is so large. I too hope that someday I will find another heart dog that will be there by my side, my best friend. I hope you have much joy with your new journey. I too hope someday that my heat will sing again with joy…….
Thank you, Shery, I am so very sorry. We are granted all the wonderful days with our animals, and in return we have to go through a few hard ones. How painful, but the reward is worth the pain. Deepest sympathy.
Oh Shery……how my heart breaks for you. I do understand what you are going through. I have lost horses, cows (a Jersey milk cow that was MY baby), a mule and many doggies. The last episode was so hard, I truly felt I could not go through it again. It’s just too hard. Good Lord, I still had a wad of tissue here by my computer left over from your last post! Once again, I cried my eyes out for what you are going through. I tried to share with my husband, but just couldn’t get the words out. Gosh darn, life can be tough. I’m sending prayers to my Wyo sis and just wish I were there to give you a hug to squeeze the stuffin’s outta ya!! Love from your SoCal sister, Vikki
Oh, Shery. Wow! Cried buckets with you…again. My Bluebellt was dear to me too. I read a piece by Alice Walker once about her witnessing a horse grieve for another. True stuff. Only animal lovers can know this. Apple is beautiful. Glad she is "home" with you.
So sorry for your loss. Our 4 legged family members are so stitched into our soul that the grieving is all-consuming. Your beautiful horses knew that and you are the now the warrior to send them off in love for happy trails until reunited again with them. Life is so short that only the loving and giving to other equine (all animals)will give us love and guidance to follow our path and make a difference while we are here.
I am so sorry Shery. Your post was heartfelt and I have shed some tears but would have read it even if I knew that was what to was to come. They were beautiful horses and I know you will miss them. We have not lost a pet so magnificent but family dogs and even a couple of my chickens have made me quite sad for days. May God bless you with peace of heart and know we all love you because otherwise why would we be here reading and commenting to your sad but also happy story. Of course, by happy, I mean the wonderful times you just shared with all of us that you had with your beloved friend.
Oh how I cried for you. Putting down a loved one when you know it is the best thing for them is the hardest and losing two loved ones so close together…..my heart is heavy for you. I know getting another loved one helps but it doesn’t take away the intense sadness. We put our beloved dog down and I stayed with him till the complete end and i am glad I did but it was so very hard. We got another rescue within weeks and it helped to have a new love to take care of but the saddness was still there and still is even now upon occasion. when I love, I love deep and Shortie will always be my boy. And I am grateful for him being in my life and grateful to have spent that time with him. Now I know he is in heaven eating all that he wants and playing all that he wants. Love takes care of all.
Dear Sherry,
I have just read your moving tribute to your beloved horse, Apple Pi Dolly Rose. I recently lost two of my beloved pets, Baxter a Maine Coon Cat and Bruno, a collie, huskie, sheperd mix. They were 14 and 15 years old. I loved them so. I now have two new puppies, a golden/doodle and a labradoodle, both girls! I have always loved horses, but have never owned one. I live on Seabrook Island in South Carolina and we have an equestrian center here which allows me to ride and visit the horses! I have come across your site as I am researching for a novel I am writing and I needed to learn about cattle ranching and calving. I am so happy to have found you and love all the information you share on this topic. I have to admit, I’m very taken with your writings and plan to be a follower of your site! I will be reading as many of your posts as I can in order to learn more about cattle ranching! Thanks so much for sharing your life! Terry Fansler
A beautiful tribute that brought tears to my soul & heart!
I had to have my 11 year old daughter BAILEY who owns her own
gelding Pony of America 14.2 hand horse named "DANDY" read the rest as
her Mom was so choked up reading:(
My daughters #1 Love is her boy!
Thank you for a most fascinating story of your lives.
As a mom who dreamt of having horses be my world young, I was unable to until my daughter
got the bug @ age 4! Now I’m turning 49 & just going to start riding for first to my daughters desire
I join & have this love shared as a bonding unity.
Thank you, Christy &Bailey