Her Final Walk

I took both my girls for a walk yesterday.

It occurred to me that we may not have any more rain.  At Mabel's actual funeral, her hidey hole swimming spot was dry. So was the waterfalls. While we have some water, I had to get my girl out there. I wanted her to be in her favorite spots in the creek...and it was just time. 

And Macy Blue loves being at the creek as much as her big sister! Having her along for the walk made this task much less sad.

We placed a pinch of Mabel in the hidey hole spot. I leaned in for a shot downstream. You can see why she loved it so.

Then we went down to the waterfall swimming spot and dropped a generous handful there.

I stood in the spot where all the dogs would shake to dry off and tell their humans how happy they were, and I dug a hole with the heel of my shoe and buried a bit of her there. I can't think of a single soul who was ever unhappy in that spot. Mabel never was...

I went around to my favorite sitting rock. It's deep water in the front but you can climb on from dry land in the back. You've seen many photos from this spot. I've watched many  happy dogs swim from this spot.

Dropped a pinch of her there too, in the shallow waters on the back of the rock. Mabel used to stand on her hind legs and check on me there. 

The water music is especially nice in this spot. It's no wonder we both loved it so.

I placed a few pinches in the spot that connects the Darkside with the same old place (We call it "the sop") . Mabel was always fascinated by the fact that her two favorite hikes somehow met in the middle. She loved it when we could run into friends who were having a completely different hike and yet they could all swim together.

She would often wander up the hill on the opposite shore just to see if any friends were coming along.

Next, we went to Dirty Creek, Mabel's favorite spot as a pup. This place had water during the funeral but it would've made the hike too strenuous for the older members of our pack. I placed some of her under the leaning tree. When she was a pup and I could barely walk, I would sit on a rock nearby and just let her roam around here for hours. When I was in a wheelchair and couldn't walk at all, I would park nearby and let her out of the car. She would return half an hour later, wet and happy. 

What was left was dumped further downstream, under the mulberry trees. Mabel would lie down here and just take it all in. 

She was my dreamer, my vista seeker, my wanderer, my love and my friend. She's in all of her favorite places now. But she's always in my heart.