Flying Geese and the Hope Dogs

When you’re dying of breast cancer, you start to see, if you hadn’t before, what in life is truly important. You discard the unneeded and pull closer the needed. Some of those things might surprise others, but magically they give you the power to get through the day. They might seem fanciful and not at all practical. Yet, they’re the things you hold dear and, in fact, they become the things you desperately need.

David Weiskircher was his wife’s sole caregiver. They had friends and family and an excellent medical team, but they had something else, namely their dogs, specifically herding dogs. These dogs, to their heart and soul, define what is dedication and determination. They are shepherds in the truest sense. It also turns out they’re naturally-gifted caregivers.

Mr. Weiskircher stoked his wife’s hope by writing stories that featured her dearly-loved dogs. Despite the odds and setbacks, each story concluded with a feeling that hope had not only won in a given situation, but that it would win again.

After all that, the hope dogs weren’t done. Since his wife died, they’ve stepped even closer to Mr. Weiskircher’Daivs side to help keep his head above the roiling waters of grief.