Quotes from Gary Kowalski

Animals, like us, are living souls. They are not things. They are not objects. Neither are they human. Yet they mourn. They love. They dance. They suffer. They know the peaks and chasms of being.

We are mortals all, human and nonhuman, bound in one fellowship of love and travail. No one escapes the fate of death. But we can, with caring, make our good-byes less tormented. If we broaden the circle of our compassion, life can be less cruel.

I have done mostly what most men do, And pushed it out of my mind; But I can't forget, if I wanted to, Four-Feet trotting behind. Day after day, the whole day through — Wherever my road inclined — Four-Feet said, "I am coming with you!" And trotted along behind. — RUDYARD KIPLING, "Four-Feet

It can be shattering when these creatures die.

our pets help us through hard times. "In dark hours," the poet W. H. Auden wrote of his dog Rolfi, "your silence may be of more help than many two-legged comforters.

Some pets may be more deeply missed than others. In a study at the University of Pennsylvania, trained bereavement counselors were paired with people who were mourning for their pets in an effort to understand more about this kind of loss. The research showed that individuals who lose a cat may have a more severe grief reaction and need greater follow-up than those who lose a dog.

The word euthanasia literally means "good death.

Although one's friends and family will gather for support in the event of a human death, those who grieve for a pet will most likely go home at night to a house that feels empty and abandoned.

But the truth is that many animals perish because they have plain run out of steam.

In the modern world of North America and Europe, special cemeteries for pets have existed for more than a hundred years.

Tener hijos nos hace madurar. Cuidar un animal nos hace más humanos

From out of the infinite realm of possibility, a never-to-be-repeated creature comes into being, looks out briefly on the universe, passes its life force along to coming generations, then rejoins the undifferentiated vastness from which it emerged.

the mere passage of hours is not enough to resolve a grief.

Animals enrich our lives in countless ways, with their playfulness, their tranquility, their constancy, and their love. If they can help us remember that death is not our enemy but simply one more moment in the world's endless process of becoming, dissolution, and renewal, they will have imparted a final gift.

Animals often understand more of these matters than most people imagine.

But regrettably, whether through a failure of nerve, or out of false optimism — hoping for improvement in an incurable condition — many people end up making the process of dying more protracted than it has to be.

We sense the warmth of their affection and the depth of their loyalty, forming emotional bonds that can be as strong and nurturing as any other in life.

If this is foolish," Keillor writes in the final stanza, "so be it." But it is not foolish or childish — merely human. Our sense of loss deserves to be respected, not belittled.

The combination of touch and talk with an animal seems to be even more beneficial than similar contact with another human being.)

In dark hours," the poet W. H. Auden wrote of his dog Rolfi, "your silence may be of more help than many two-legged comforters.

Until one has loved an animal," wrote Anatole France, "a part of one's soul remains unawakened." Almost anyone who has ever let an animal under his or her skin will agree that for all the aggravations and heartaches that come with having a pet, the return in love, affection, and memory can make it all worthwhile.

A faithful friend is a strong protection. A person who has found one has found a treasure. A faithful friend is beyond price, And his value cannot be weighed. A faithful friend is a life-giving medicine. — The Apocrypha