Sometimes I forget that life is a wheel, and it turns around and around, and nothing is new, and if you wait for it, life will come around to you, showing its many beautiful and awful sides. For more than a year, Izzy and I went to visit Warren and Helen Cardwell. Helen was dying and she loved Izzy dearly, as did her devoted husband Warren. I took a number of photographs of this very loving couple on my Hospice Journal and I was touched deeply by their devotion to one another, and by Warren’s unflagging devotion to Helen at the end of her life.

Helen and I also became friends, and we would argue well into our visits about the nature of dog’s souls and whether or not they went to heaven. Helen died several years ago and now Warren has his own issues to deal with at age 86. I visited Warren frequently after Helen’s death, then the visits fell off. I was going through my divorce, and to be honest, we had seen so much death it was hard for me to bear then.

Warren and I have stayed in touch. He calls me his “dear old friend,” an honored title. He called me yesterday  with the greatest sorrow in his voice to tell me that his much loved dog Prince died last week at age 16. Price was a faithful companion to Warren through long and dark days, and I thought, no, now Warren is alone in that house.

Warren does not complain, he is gracious and grateful for his life, as always and filled with great stories and memories despite the obvious pain that he is in. On an impulse, I brought Red to see him, as he loved Izzy as much as Helen did. Warren is no longer able to drive or move around the house too far. But he looked great, cheerful and very alert.

Warren nearly melted at the sight of Red, who seemed to know precisely what to do. This remarkable dog, who had not even lived in a house in his life and is still learning to climb stairs, almost morphed into Izzy before my eyes. What a natural therapy dog he is. Warren was beaming at the sight of him.

Red looked Warren in the eye came over to him, connected to him, and you could see Warren’s spirits lift.  He had the same biscuit tin from which he fed Izzy. Red put his head on Warren’s knees and held his gaze. I confess to being astonished, speechless perhaps. It was hard to understand what I was seeing, but we – Red and I – will be visiting Warren – a courageous and admirable man – regularly now and I will be sharing these visits with you, with Warren’s gracious permission, as always. I never stop wondering at the way dogs can enter your life and open you to new experience if you let them.