Sage's Wisdom

Those of you who know Sage will think this caption, "Sage's Wisdom" is an oxymoron.  But she is quite wise, especially when it comes to Murphy.

Several days ago I bumped into a friend whose cat had been quite ill.  We chatted about the cat's progress, then I asked about her other cat.  She related that the healthy cat always waited until her brother ate before she did.  Consequently, since her brother was ill and not eating, she would sit by her food dish, staring at it, then walk away.  Apparently this lasted for several days.

I think about Sage and how she relies on Murphy.  Sage is "labrador challenged."  Unlike Murphy, Sage is not at all interested in countless hours of playing fetch.  Sage's idea of a game is to get the ball and keep it.  She somehow missed out on the retriever part of her breed.  Aside from the lack of interest in becoming a duck hunting dog, Sage watches every move Murphy makes.  If Murphy slips into the kitchen when cheese or meat is taken out of the fridge, Sage will come running in, sit, and mimic whatever Murph is doing.  It's as if she is saying: ok, so is this what a lab does, Murphy?

While Sage is also quite independent, Murphy is her grounding.  Frequently during the day, Sage, who sleeps on the bed upstairs, will come down just to see where Murphy is and what she is doing.  She never comes into my study to check on me, but she will sniff Murph, sometimes lay down near her, then go back upstairs.  

Like my friend's cats, these two dogs are dependent upon each other.  Maybe more than they are on me.  

Murphy's best friend was Riley, my Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, who died a few years ago.  Several weeks after she died, we went on a trip to Sun Valley.  And I noticed that Murph seemed a little lethargic.  I realized that in being away from home, she noticed Riley was not there.  Murph looked for her in the places where Riley normally settled during road trips, like the closet in a hotel room, against the bench seat in the van.  Finally toward the end of the trip Murphy perked up, but I suspect it took her a few days to realize her friend was not joining us on the trip.

So I worry about Sage.  Until recently she treated Murphy as a peer.  She invited Murphy to play, she would tackle her, try to engage in chasing games, and always steal Murph's tennis ball.  Now, now Sage seems to realize there is a change.  That Murphy needs all gentle all the time.  There are more licks, nuzzles, and leaning into Murphy's body.  I'm right here, Murphy.  Hopefully Sage grows accustom to the changes in Murphy, that she is aware of the long, slow, fade.  And in the end, she knows that Murphy will always be there for her.  It will be Murphy's memory that whispers to Sage to run into the kitchen when the cheese or meat comes out of the fridge. 

Murphy's day.