TIME TO SAY GOODBYE..

About five years ago, we were on holiday in south Devon , mainly walking the coast path and one day we walked the Revelstoke Drive in and around Noss Mayo.  It`s a quite spectacular walk around the banks of the River Yealm and along the coastline with tremendous views of the open ocean - on a clear day you can just make out the Eddystone lighthouse on the distant horizon.  

The last part of the walk is pretty much all down hill back to the village of Noss Mayo but if you turn off the main path down to the left opposite the old coastguard cottages, you can find a hidden beach which is quiet, peaceful and isolated.  We made our way down the steep slope to the rocky shoreline and decided to have our lunch there whilst taking in the tranquility of our surroundings.

And it was there that I took this photo of Barney who, like us, was glad of the rest after the long walk.   It`s one of many photos we have taken of Barney over the years, not only at home but also at all the places we have been together - Cornwall, Devon, the New Forest and here in Kent and wherever we have been, Barney has been a quiet, peaceful, faithful friend and companion.

So you can imagine how devastated we are today that Barney was put to sleep yesterday afternoon following a series of medical problems in the last few months.   Yesterday he became very ill and his prospects were not good and so we took the difficult decision to say goodbye to him, knowing that it was the kindest decision to make for him, although it has left us in bits as a result. 

Our grief is a mixture of heartfelt sorrow for ourselves that Barney has gone, but coupled with real sadness for him that he has had so much to contend with over the recent past and that his life could not have been even longer and happier.  We should be used to it by now - Barney was our fifth golden retriever - but if anything it gets harder. 

On the right hand side of this post and down a bit, there`s a list of `labels` and if you click on the one `barney` there are 41 posts which form the chronicles of Barney over his nine and a half happy years with us.  And that`s what I will remember - a happy dog and a gentle, loving, loyal friend.