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In December of 2000, we adopted two six-pound litter mates.
I wanted to name them Lucy and Ethel.
Kathy pushed back.
She insisted she wouldn't call them from the yard, "Lucy...Ethel..."
So, we negotiated and named them Lucy and Gracie.
Grace passed--can it be?--just over three years ago.
She lived up to her name. She passed with grace. She taught us, by the hand of providence, how to love in life and to lose in death.
She prepared us--unbeknownst to us at the time--for a prolonged season of loss.
It culminated this week with the passing of her sister Lucy.
Lucy's body had been deteriorating. Her sight and hearing had grown dim. Her once strong legs were beginning to weaken. But her spirit was strong. Her tail drew happy faces in the air; her smile was infectious. But this past Sunday, as she lay quietly resting, I told her, "We're in no hurry. But when you're ready to go, we'll be okay."
I didn't know she'd take me up on the offer so quickly.
The next day she passed. One final run through an open gate to the greatest of freedoms.
Like Grace, Lucy has reinforced a difficult truth by merely living up to her name.
Lucy. Luce. Loosen. Loosen your grip.
On family and on friends. On self and its stuff. On joy and on sorrow.
But never on trust.
Author Hillary Zunin observed, "The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief--but the pain of grief is only a shadow when compared with the pain of never risking love."
I'll risk love. Always. But with a loose grip.
Now, if I can just convince my heart. |
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Michael Fox
m�agine!
530/613.2774
407 Myrtle Drive
Farmerville, LA, USA 71241 |
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In addition to personal and professional coaching,
m�agine! specializes in spiritual transformation coaching,
employing its proprietary models
--Values, Vision, Voice and Heart, Soul, Mind & Strength--
as well as
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator� curriculum
published by CPP, the People Development People.
Michael's books include
Complete in Christ,
Complete in Christ Spiritual Transformation Workbook,
and Biblio�files.
Coaching fees are based upon a sliding scale. Contact us for details.
For additional information, visit our website at maginethepossibilities.net.
Limited scholarships are available for spiritual transformation coaching.
On the flip side, if you are able, please inquire about opportunities
to fund scholarships for those who cannot afford coaching fees.
View our archives!
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