That's What Heaven Will be Like

Yesterday, we said goodbye to our loving pet.  She was with our family for almost 19 years to the day and I remember, vividly, the day she was born.  Jasmine was an example of unconditional love.  She was always happy to see us walk through the door and eager to comfort us when we were sad.  

Some of my favorite memories were the way she would sit on her hind legs with her paws on the low bay window sill, watching the birds and trying to "talk" to them... she would actually make short little mew sounds that sounded like the birds.  And, when our son went to California for a year, she would spend the first few months sniffing, rolling, and sleeping on the floor in front of the TV where she could still smell his shampoo on the carpet... until the last lingering scent was gone.

When I heard she was in so much pain, I was praying that God would ease her pain and comfort our sorrows.  Mid-prayer I thought, "she was a cat... why would God care?"  But then I realized, God didn't just want us to have dominion over the earth and the creatures, He made them for His and our enjoyment as well.  For that matter, I believe there will be animals in heaven... Revelations talks of the lion laying down with the lamb and about horsemen on horses.  So, why not fish and birds, cats, and dogs?

So I woke early this morning with fresh tears and the lyrics of this song migling with the memories of our beloved Jasmine:

"Love without measure
Space without time
Life with no crying
Will one day be mine
Hearts never breaking
Hands that don't fight
Days that don't end with
The darkness of night

The lamb and the lion
Will walk side by side
In a world where freedom, abides..."
                       - Heaven, Michael English -