What We Can Learn From The Seasons Of Life
TRIGGER WARNING! If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to a beloved pet, this will hit home.
Today marks 4 years since I lost my good boy. If you’ve ever had to say goodbye to a beloved pet, you will know this feeling all too well. It’s gut wrenching. In fact, it’s one of the hardest things we as dog mums have to do. If only they lived as long as we did.
I’ll never forget the phone call on that Friday morning that saw Ben and I rushing to get to Stafford Pet Emergency because our darling boy was passing. He had been under the care of nurses and vets for 4 days prior and in an awful twist of fate, passed away that morning, despite us being told he was in recovery the evening prior. It wasn’t to be. His time was up. I wasn’t going to allow a prolonged existence of my sweet little boy sitting alone in that veterinary surgery any longer, and so I called time.
Leaving the animal hospital with our dead dog in our arms is a memory I wish I could erase forever. It still burns in my mind to this day.
Reflecting on that awful time in our lives, I am grateful we made the decisions we did because it was in our boy’s best interests. I had to put my own feelings aside and do what was best for him. Which was to help him pass.
2020 goes down as probably the worst year of my life, despite the fact I made close to a million dollars in my business that year. Amongst all the real estate hustle of the covid boom, I had to say goodbye to both my boys (the pugs) and carry on like it was just another day in real estate land.
This was Samson’s regular seat at the table whilst I house-hunted. (I miss the weight on my legs.)
Stupidly, the day we were told Samson was getting better was the day I agreed to represent clients at an auction that Saturday. I thought he was on the mend and so I took the job. That Saturday, I shoved my feelings aside and bid at the auction. We didn’t win.
Afterwards, I caught up with my real estate mentor at a local cafe and broke down in tears. He’d never seen me cry like that before but I needed to let it out. The pain was excruciating and all I wanted to do was roll up into a ball and die.
As you can probably tell, my boys meant the world to me. After all, they’d seen me through many seasons of my life. From my early 20’s right through to my late 30’s, the boys were my shadows, so losing them felt like losing two teenage children. I tell myself they just grew up and left home. That’s how I deal with it.
Which brings me to the reason I’m sharing all of this with you.
Seasons of life.
Ben took this — one random Sunday at our home in Ascot. (I feel like we posed perfectly for the “candid” shot.)
We all go through it. The good times. The bad. Periods of bliss followed by times of grief. It’s all part of the human experience and whether you like it or not, these times come to us all at some point. It’s how you learn to step through them that count.
For me, I’ve learned that recognising it as “a time” is what helps me to make sense of it all. It doesn’t last and soon enough, a new season rebirths. If only I had told myself this when I was going through the depression. Maybe I would have come out of it much sooner.
Looking back on it all, I can see that learning to accept a time for what it is - a grief period - a time when you’re single - or a time when you feel like you need to be alone - a hustle period - a party period - a family phase. Whatever stage of life you may be going through, know that it won’t last forever - and that is both a blessing and a curse.
But what it is - is life.
MEET THE WRITER
I champion driven women.
Wendy Russell is a Luxury Buyer’s Agent (aka property nerd), dog mumma and self-made career woman on a mission to help you build your empire. It starts here.
Hey! I’m Wendy.
I’m a storytelling writer, champagne lover and Luxury Buyer’s Agent based in Brisbane Australia. I write about the realities of life, real estate and my journey as a self-made career woman.
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