My buddy Dave - Measuring life in dog ears.

Three of the dogs Dave has owned since I have known him.

I am 18 in dog ears.  Notice the lack of the letter "y".  I have had 9 of the beasts, starting at two years of age, all the way up to right now.  All of them were an important part of my life, a part of my family's lives.  If you haven't made the connection yet, 2x9 = 18:  Nine dogs means 18 ears.

I have had the privilege of knowing my friend, Dave, for 6 of his dog ears.  Zeek (bottom), Zoey (top), and Charlie (right) have all been important animals in the Schmidtke household.  Of course, there have been cats too, but we don't measure in cat years because the number easily gets into the thousands (nine lives x #ofcats = huge numbers).  

Silliness aside, it is important to me to mention my great love for my friend, Dave.  Right now, at this moment in time, as I am typing, he is lying in a hospital bed, having just had open heart surgery, recovering from that and issues with his lungs.  He is in ICU, fighting for what should be his new lease on life, except that his body is struggling.  

I am praying for his recovery.  I ask those I know to pray for him.  I am encouraging his wife, also a close family friend, in this time of uncertainty.  Dave is one of the best people I have ever known.  Kind, generous, fun-loving, and offers his time and energy to anyone in his sphere of life.  I pray for a full recovery and a long life.  He has a lot of dog ears left to live.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen
 

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