last updated Feb. 13, 2008

The Rainbow Bridge
© 1998 Steve & Diane Bodofsky.

By the edge of a woods, at the foot of a hill,
is a lush, green meadow where time stands still.
Where the friends of man and woman do run,
when their time on earth is over and done.

For here, between this world and the next,
is a place where each beloved creature finds rest.
On this golden land, they wait and they play,
till the Rainbow Bridge they cross over one day.

No more do they suffer, in pain or in sadness,
for here they are whole, their lives filled with gladness.
Their limbs are restored, their health renewed,
their bodies have healed, with strength imbued.

They romp through the grass, without even a care,
until one day they start, and sniff at the air.
All ears prick forward, eyes dart front and back,
then all of a sudden, one breaks from the pack.

For just at that instant, their eyes have met,
together again, both person and pet.
So they run to each other, these friends from long past,
the time of their parting is over at last.

The sadness they felt while they were apart,
has turned into joy once more in each heart.
They embrace with a love that will last forever,
and then, side-by-side, they cross over . . . together.

Inspired by a Norse legend.

Tennessee - Abby, a 6-year-old black-&-white female with heart failure.
Nebraska - Topper, a black-smoke-&-white male. He was rescued from a collector and had 2.5 happy years before his death from pneumonia.
Maryland - Ziggy, a black-smoke-&-white male, and Sabrina, a dilute calico female, two rescues who couldn't be nursed back to health.

Alabama - Uther, one of the 78 Cornies seized (graphic photos) from a breeder. He died from burns and injuries after he got trapped in a dryer.
Michigan - Frank, one of the 78 Cornies seized (graphic photos) from a breeder.
Ohio - Suki, a 9-year-old spayed torti female.
Florida - a declawed Cornie in Fort Walton Beach.
Michigan - an approximately 10-12 year old flame-point male.
Washington - Rex and Star, two elderly Cornies.
Connecticut - a 5-year-old black female with a severe heart condition.

Purrexious Mauveberry of Rexphiles: March 1991 - February 8, 2008. Berry, a lavender-smoke Devon male with a hazel eye, was abandoned at a groomer's shop in 2000 or 2001. I got him about six months later when I was hoping to write a book about Devons. Sadly, 9/11 tanked the idea of a Devon book but I never regretted getting him. He packed a lot of punch in his one-eyed glares and gave me one as he died.

Jalapeno - a black-&-white male I fostered before placing him in a loving Fountain Hills home. He developed congestive heart failure and had to be euthanized March 31, 2007, ten days before his 15th birthday. Goodbye Jalapeno, you'll be missed by Fajita and Jabanero, as well as many others.

Frank Jms and Jesse Jms of Rexphiles
(Jesse appears on page 35 of my book).

Littermates and the best of friends, they lived with my parents their entire lives and died less than a month apart. Goodbye my dear James brothers. You stole our food and hearts. 9/17/05

Marley of Rexphiles: ? - August 15, 2004. Marley was abandoned in Apache Junction where a co-worker found him in 2001 and brought him to me. I had to euthanize him when he stopped eating and developed severe jaundice.

Ernie: ? - February 1994. My brother's red-tabby and white male. An elderly cat, he was discovered in 1995 at the Arizona Humane Society. He had been declawed on all four paws. Ernie lived with my brother and sister-in-law and their two daughters for nine years until his death.

Eureka: ? - December 2000. I adopted her from the Maricopa County Animal Care & Control. I had to euthanize her when she was about 7-months-old because she got distemper. I'd only had her six weeks.

Photo by Eric Price

Pretzel: June 1990 - June 1997. I had to euthanize him when his hind-quarters became paralyzed.

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