My Brother Mark and The Big Dog Bentley share a moment of repose during a 2018 summer visit.
As if our hearts weren’t heavy enough, our cold, Spring season of loss actually began months before the loss of my brother Mark. Way back mid-Winter, just after my January travels, we suffered the tragic death of The Big Dog. Being 105 lbs. plus, a Gentle Giant like Bentley, with his big Butterscotch Butt and fragile hips, lead to an incident prompting his peaceful departure on a frigid February morning. February ended up being one of the coldest, wettest and sunless months in Midwest recorded history, which is exactly how it felt, down to the bone. As to an appropriate dirge for B., aka Sweet Boy, aka CodeBentley, aka Tuff Stuff, the slightly edited version of Bruce Springsteen’s Terry Song will always be Bentley’s song, God rest his sweet, unconditionally loving canine soul. I’m finally on the hunt for a Dog as it’s long, long overdue, so watch for a Higher Haven Mascot as in Hungarian Vizsla (?), Black Lab(?), Golden Retriever(?), Italian Mastiff(?) Husky(?), Wolf(??) pup joining our ranks sometime soon. And we’re back On with a regular monthly overnight, an extended June Solstice weekend retreat, a July Summer Herbal Immersive and September Women’s retreat with some additional offerings to help turn the next few months into a summer of Hope and Healing.
“They say you can’t take it with you, but I think that they’re wrong
Cause all I know is I woke up this morning and something Big was gone…
Gone into that dark ether where you’re still young and hard and cold
Just like when they built you Brother, they broke the mold
Now your death is upon us and we’ll return your ashes to the earth
And I know you’ll take comfort in knowing you’ve been roundly blessed and cursed
But Love Is A Power Greater Than Death just like the songs and stories told
And when she built you brother, she broke the mold
That attitude is a Power Greater Than Death just like the songs and stories told
And when they built you Brothers… “