I Will Follow You Into the Dark

Amico, a brown dachshund, from Italy, borrowed all the heartbeats he could, and fought off the Bridge Dementors who were determined to bring him to the Bridge with every ounce of energy, until, as is true with all of us, finally he had to submit, and pass on to the immortal side.

Amico, for many years, lived with his mother and father.   They were two senior citizens with little to do but dote on their loving little boy.  They were a close pack of happy thieves.  But, illness caught up with his dad, and a year ago, he went to the Bridge, leaving his wife and dog with only one another.

If you had to choose a time to leave the mortal world last year was perfect.  The past six months have been a disaster movie with no ending.   Amico and his mom Marie, who was unable to leave the house,  spent every minute together.  They would have anyway, but it is different when you have no choice. Amico and Marie were also getting old simultaneously, and they hoped that they would go at the same time, but life is rarely fair in that manner.

During the pandemic, Amico began to take ill.  Marie had promised him she would always be his side, and if he went to the vet, because of government restrictions, they would be separated.   Marie knew Amico and could tell her baby was very sick.  If he entered the vet’s, she doubted she would see him again.  Also, she was having breathing issues and had no stamina. The end was near for both of them.  When the end came, they would face it as they had lived for the last dozen-plus years.  Together.  

Secretly, Marie wished to go first.  Amico would not understand what happened if she passed first. Also, she knew Amico’s father, Anthony would be on the immortal side waiting for him.  Marie thought that she could handle being alone better than Amico could.

Marie lay next to Amico in their bed and whispered to him, “fly away to God’s celestial shore.”  Little Amico breathed his last.  That is when I, with Anthony next to me, saw Amico standing on the other side of the Bridge.  As happy as Amico was to see his father again, he would not cross.  His Dad walked down the steps, and they spoke from opposite sides of the Bridge.  Anthony told him if he didn’t cross, Amico would become a ghostly spirit sentenced to walk the Earth unseen for eternity.  When Anthony came back alone, I was afraid of the dog’s soul.  But, Anthony repeated to me what Amico had told him.  He was waiting for his mom, who would be there presently.

If a story is happy or sad, it depends on how you interpret it.  I call it the cereal box theory.  If you look on one side, you see the name of the cereal and the logo.  On the other side, you see games, jokes, riddles, and pictures.  It is the same box, but the perspective is different.  When days passed, a strange smell seeped from inside Maria’s house, and her neighbors gained access, they found Maria in her bed, expired, her body curled around Amico, who they determined died a short time before her.  It was seen as a tragic story of a broken-hearted woman who couldn’t go on without her dog.

But, at Rainbow Bridge, we saw Maria, looking young again, running to catch up with Amico, and then crossing the Bridge with him, where Anthony, now young as well, waited with open arms.  They met for a long, lovely hug that left us all in tears. 

For we angels, it was a beautiful reunion.  On the mortal side, people were sad that Maria had died alone from a broken heart with no one to mourn her.  Conversely, that meant Maria, Antony and Amcio left no one behind and could move directly to Happily Ever After, where they would never encounter another sorrowful moment.    If something tragic happens, look to the sky, try to see the clouds from both sides, and remember behind them is the sun.