As I speak to buyers or sellers about features of a home, the kitchen is frequently the focus.  It is where family and friends tend to congregate, no matter how inviting the remainder of the home is.  Is it the cooking that brings everyone together, or is it the comfort of fond memories we have that begin there?  Whatever the reason, that's where we seem to gather.

My family and I went through an experience yesterday that has left us sad and empty and it got me to thinking about the heart of our home. 
We had to have our beloved yellow lab, Spike, put to sleep.  It was a truly heart wrenching for my husband, my teenage sons and me.  We were home together yesterday and needed to rely on one another because of the pain and emptiness we were experiencing.  We all agreed that it feels like the heart of our home has been yanked out.   Spike was so much part of the fabric of our family and as I'm looking out my office window, I am missing seeing him take his usual path through the woods.  Even the fresh snow has covered his tracks from the recent week. 
My sons are home from school today due to the weather.  Usually, they would come down stairs and go directly to Spike to give him a kiss and a hug.  Today is different and lonely.

Spike often made himself completely at home in our kitchen.  There are so many funny stories.....Like the time (many years ago when he still had the agility to carry this off) I had a stick of butter on the counter, walked into the family room, then back into the kitchen only to find the stick of butter missing, and Spike licking his lips and looking very guilty!
He was such a social animal and made himself at home wherever we were.  Since I enjoy cooking, that meant Spike had himself sprawled out in the middle of the floor to be near me.  I had to be very aware of where he was, because one quick step in the wrong direction could send me flying and it was up to me to step over him! 

For so many, our pets become family members.  They give us such unconditional love.  They help people heal from illnesses or disease; they are working wonders helping troubled teens get back on track. The immediate solace given by our pets is irreplaceable. 

So, my frame of reference about the heart of a home has changed.  I will never again have the conversation about the heart of a home being the kitchen without having my private chuckles and special thoughts about Spike along with it.

Farewell, my dear Spike.   You will be missed and never out of our hearts.