Wilbon's Sweet Sam I Am

I remember the day you came into my life.  During that long drive to
Arkansas to get you, I kept wondering if we would have that special
bond that I'd heard so much about.  Then seeing you for the first
time, thinking how small and fragile you seemed,  I wondered if you
would really grow up to be the 'gentle giant' that people spoke of.
You were my first Newfoundland and I was full of questions and self-doubts,
wanting only to do right by you.  But you seemed bound and determined to totally
win me over, show me what you were all about - and you set out to do just that.

You were so full of love and life that, even at a very young and tender age,
you had the heart and soul of a special friend, a true champion.
 

As you grew and matured, I learned the true nature of you and
the Newfoundland breed.  I learned what it meant to be stoic,
unwavering in friendship, to have compassion for others,
and what unconditional love truly meant.

Sam was C.G.C. (Canine Good Citizen) and A.A.T. (Animal Assisted Therapy)
certified when he was 6 months old – almost unheard of back then - and started
visiting facilities regularly.  As he matured he underwent more in-depth training
and eventually began working with individual clients and their specific issues
and needs.  While he worked with people of all ages, Sam seemed to have a
special affinity for children that were confined to wheelchairs.  When doing
generalized visits he would actively seek out these special children, seemed to
know they couldn’t run and play like other kids therefore they needed the
extra attention...attention he gladly gave.

Photo courtesy of "Online" magazine, January 1998
Sam was retired at 8 1/2 years old due to declining health.  The elbow
dysplasia (Grade III, diagnosed at 2 years old) made it difficult for him to
navigate the slick hallways in most of the facilities.  And, the entropian in
both eyes (diagnosed at 1 year old) was causing him to rapidly lose his vision;
none of the three surgeries to correct the problem had ever worked.  He
spent the last year of his life mostly on the porch, soaking up the sun.
Although he was completely blind by this time, the loss of his vision never
once deterred him.  He would gladly run down to the creek with his sighted
pal, Allie - who would always give an occasional bark to keep Sam going in
the right direction.  It was truly amazing!

Though you are physically gone from my life, mentally, you're always with me.
I think of you often and the tears are shed unabashedly.

If tears could build a stairway, and memories a lane,
I'd walk right up to Heaven and bring you home again.

In loving memory...

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