“Today, while I was out on my usual run, a little girl outside the funeral home called out, ‘Can I pet your puppy?’ I smiled and replied, ‘Of course! As long as your parents are okay with it!’ She gave me a shy smile and said, ‘Oh, my parents aren’t out here—my mom’s inside, and my daddy died… we’re at his funeral.’ Before I could respond, Blue walked right up to her and gently sat down in front of her. The little girl wrapped her arms around Blue’s neck and wouldn’t let go.
Her friends and family gathered around us, and as I looked around, I noticed there weren’t any dry eyes (except for hers). I quickly dried my own tears (thank goodness for tinted sunglasses!) and chatted with the little girl for a few minutes. Then she jumped up and exclaimed, ‘I want you to meet my Daddy! Can you please come meet him?’ I said, ‘If you want me to meet your daddy, I’d absolutely love to, as long as it’s okay that I look like this!’ (I had just finished a 3-mile run—LOL!)
I walked into the funeral home with this sweet girl and met her daddy, her mom, and her grandparents. She showed me the beautiful bouquet of flowers around his casket and told me how pretty she thought everything looked. Then she asked if Blue and I could stay for a few more minutes so she could pet Blue again. So we did.
The little girl’s aunt and uncle looked at me with tears streaming down their faces, and her aunt whispered, ‘I think God led you and Blue over here today for a reason… Blue’s love and gentleness have really touched our hearts.’
I’ve always called Blue my ‘gentle giant’ because she seems to sense when someone is sad or upset, and she has this amazing calmness about her that’s just indescribable.”