Meet Wendy - Center for Pet Loss Grief

The Center for Pet Loss Grief

Hi, I’m Wendy and I want to share my personal story with YOU . . .

Wendy and Marley Van de Poll

My life crumbled on December 9, 2013, when I got the news that my partnership with Marley (our Samoyed) was going to end. Marley had cancer. “She might only last another week or two, maybe a month,” our vet said. In fact, he was surprised she was still alive at all.

I was devastated. What was I going to do? I was losing my best friend, teacher, partner, and guide. How was I going to survive without her? My husband and I saw the CAT scan and the big honking tumor, but there was no way I was giving Marley up without a fight.

During those last ten months of “Marley Time,” I had two goals . . .

One was to do everything I could to keep Marley happy and comfortable. The second was to take the lessons Marley had taught me about how to be joyful and find a way to continue to integrate them into my life without her.

On September 22, 2014, our eyes connected as did our hearts. Marley asked me to allow her to move on. We both knew it was time.

I finally understood her lessons of unconditional love, and I was ready to face the world without her.

As she took her last breath, I knew exactly why Marley was put into my life. She helped me learn to stand on my own. And even though she wouldn’t be coming home with me again, I could choose to be happy by remembering to come home to myself!

Thank you, Marley!