#YouAreEnough30days Blog Challenge: Day 5

Day 5: In Chapter Three, “Your Life Will Be Different, But It Will Be Amazing,” I talk about how life can be beautiful again, even after unimaginable loss. Share a time when you faced unimaginable loss, and how you came to realize that you were ENOUGH to handle it.

November 5, 2018: Several years before my father passed away, I dealt with a heavy loss: the unexpected passing of Claire, my first basset hound who was nine-years-old. One morning I planned to take her to the groomer’s for a bath. I was going to enter her in a dog show that weekend. When I came outside to get her, she was laying in the dog house and appeared lethargic. I had to help carry her to the car. Her body felt cold. After bringing her to the groomer, the groomer opened Claire’s mouth to discover that her gums were white. She insisted I take Claire to the vet, so I did. The vet had to perform exploratory surgery on her. There was a golf-ball sized tumor on her spleen which was removed. Claire survived the surgery but passed away two hours later due to loss of blood. I was devastated because she had been my baby for nearly nine years.

How could my life ever be amazing again? I knew I could always get another dog, but I still loved Claire. I would get another dog, but it would not replace Claire because she would always hold a special place in my heart. I had to have faith that my life would go on and there would be another dog I could open my home and my heart to. I had the Lord to rely on as my strength and comfort. I often hear the phrase, “God will not give you more than you can handle,” yet I did not feel strong enough to handle Claire’s unexpected passing on my own. I am enough because God is more than enough, and His more-than-enough-ness makes my not-enough self more able to handle life’s challenges.

A month after Claire’s passing, I found a two-year-old basset hound at a nearby humane society. I named him Max and had him for almost nine years. I’m going through the loss even though he passed away in March of this year.