Harley had an interesting and wonderful life which was filled with love and families. Harley was not ours to begin with. He was the companion of our friend Kat. We would see Harley when visiting Kat to discuss our plans to support various political campaigns. Harley would bark at me a little but was primarily just curious. Kat who was always looking for opportunities to help people decided she needed to go to Puerto Rico to help people after the devastating hurricane. Trump refused to help so Kat said she would. She asked if she could leave Harley with us. We already had three dogs but we quickly agreed that Harley could stay with us until Kat got back.

Harley settled in with one of our dogs his size named Luke (who is here over the Rainbow Bridge already). They were always side by side and I got to call them Pete and RePete. Months later Kat came back and Harley returned to Kat, but Kat had to move her mom to Colorado (from Tenn) so that she and even Kat could get the health care that Tenn refused to provide. So Harley came back to us. Harley did not mind juggling families as long and he got his sleep in, but it was so neat to see Pete and Repete together again.

We decided to sell our house and build a new one and for months we had to stay with our daughter. Our four dogs with her three dogs. What a wonderful circus. Harley had a distinctive pitter patter when he walked and so we called him pitter patter too. When our new house was completed, our daughter decided to sell her house and so all 7 dogs, 2 grand kids, one young adult and two senior citizens all in the same house working together and enjoying the chaos. Our daughter moved into her house and so we were back to just Mary and I and Jake, Sam, Luke and Harley. All our boys were older but all seemed well. Then beginning in August 2020 Jake had a stroke and a seizure and died, devatatting us. Four months later, Sam left us. Sam was just old and out of gas. Then Luke died in April of 2021 after a long battle with seizures. This left Harley by himself with us and as we cried for the others we held Harley tight and made him promise that he would not leave us anytime soon. Harley struggled a bit looking for Luke, standing on the porch and searching for Luke through the house. Eventually he realized it was just him now and he alone was responsible for taking care of Mary and I.

We slowly recovered from losing three boy within eight months thanks to Harley. Harley would make sure he know where both of us were. I would hear him coming down the hall and turning into my "office" where he would look at me and then walk out and find Mary. In the morning Mary and I would get up be leave Harley in bed. Then while we watched the news we would hear him jump down and the pitter patter. He would turn the corner into the famiy room where Mary would say "Well look who got up." what a happy time. He would go outside and then scratch the door when he was ready to come back in. Mary by this time had made the bed so Harley jumped up, pulled one ot the pillows down and then crawl between the two pillows and take a nap. Sometimes if the bed was not made he would grudgingly go into our closet and lie down with doggie pillows and blankets. In the afternoons, I would take him on walks. He did not want to go far, just three or four houses and then maybe do a poop, which would leave him to sprint back to the house while I tried and failed to keep up with him. When he got back into the house he would often spring around the house going in circles around the hall way into the kitchen, then the family room and then back into the hallway. We would clap and cheer and he would have the biggest smile and his ears would be just full of himself. He would fly around and then jump up on the bed and plop down. Of course he would smell dinner cooking and while he was such a picky boy he would hover around us, In the evening, he would often hang around with us a we watched movies with our daughter long distance. I would give him snacks and treats after he ate his dinner. I would also carry him outside so that I could hold and cuddle this wonderful little boy.

We think Harley was 18 he sure was a healthy boy for his age until the last week.

So here we are devastated but this time alone. Harley leaving of course brings up the loss of the others and my hopes and prayers just ask that he is reunited with Jake, Sam, Luke and all the friends he made when he was with Kat.

So now I wander through the house and look at the bed expecting to see him. I walk down the driveway and see the path we walked. I wander around the back yard hoping to see him. I think I hear the scratching on the door. I think I feel him moving around on the bed. I think I hear his pitter patter. We are so heartbroken.

It has been one year since Harley left us and of course, we miss him so much but he made way for Beau a crazy but good rescue. Beau could never be a replacement for Harley, but we are so glad he is here. We miss Harley. I miss the most him running through the house. He was so fun and funny when he would get excited and start running. I miss his bark, that strange combination of dog bark and moan. He was such a good boy. So today we remember good boy Harley.

Please also visit LUKE.