‘Unconditional love’ worth thanks

I’ve now read Joseph Bell’s Thursday column twice (“For now, it just

hurts”). Once on my own and once to my wife.

Both times I filled with tears as I fully related to and

understood how he feels. We have two great dogs and they are the

stabilizers of our home, the place we can go to at all times for

unconditional love.

Please pass my sympathies on the Bell and his family and my thanks

for a wonderful piece of journalism from the heart.

STUART FRIEDMAN

Newport Coast

Joseph Bell’s words in the Thursday edition of the Daily Pilot

were heartfelt, sad and a celebration of lives shared.

I praise your willingness to share those feelings of pain and

sadness. I have followed Coco’s story through your columns during the

last several months. I’ve enjoyed your perspective on her life and

her contribution to the family dynamics in your home.

Please accept my sympathy for your loss. It has been two years

since I lost the Velcro Boys, Gus and Tugger. To this day, the

sadness of their passing can capture my heart. Yet what eases those

moments are the many, many memories of companionship, fun and just

being.

You hit the nail on the head when you wrote, “ ... I realized the

thing I missed most was her presence.” That’s it. We’re so used to

having the Cocos, Guses and Tuggers of the world as companions, it is

when we lose their physical presence, we learn a valuable lesson.

It’s not that we didn’t appreciate them during life, it is that

now we love them more for the memories that sustain us.

Yes, her presence will always be in your life. We are fortunate,

that as humans, memories can be a gift, a means of dealing with the

sadness generated by loss.

I wish you solace in the memories and no doubt the many

photographs that fill your family albums and the walls of your home.

Thanks for sharing your story. It helped me to remember and to

cherish.

DAVID W. MULLER

Corona del Mar