Dear Daddy & Mommy Carter,

My name is Pie O' Pah, and I arrived at the Bridge just a little over a
year ago. I had seven long, wonderful, and loving years with my family
before it was my time to leave this earthly plane . The night I left,
my mum knew I was going, she loved on me and held me close and she sang
our song and then she told me that when I got there, not only would all
of my brothers and sisters be there waiting for me, but that one day,
if I tried real hard, I could become a Bridge Greeter and be there for
all those passed to the Rainbow Bridge. She told me she knew I had it
in me to be able to be of comfort to others, because I had done this
for her every single day of my life on earth.

And now, after having been training for the past few months, I have at
last gained the honourable status of Official Bridge Greeter and my
wings AND your Billy the Kid is my very first greeting. I was very
excited when my brother Hobbes delivered the assignment to me early
this evening and then stood there waiting for me to open the file, he's
rather nosey fellow, but since we are family, I let him look over my
shoulder. I have to admit that when I saw the picture I thought I was
looking at Hobbes twin, he's a light sable as well, and of course we
both commented on what a handsome fellow he is.... Billy that is....
Hobbes has a big enough head as it is.

As we flipped through the file we saw the page which lists all of his
family, both here at the Bridge, and those still there on earth. This
way we know who we need to look for and who we need to look in on. Our
first stop was at Heaven's Doggy Park, where we found Lashes right off.
See, up here, when someone we love is ready to leave behind their
mortal coil, we *feel* it, and so we will actually seek out a Bridge
Greeter and say ... please take me with you, I want to be there when
they arrive, I need to see they are all right. Because even all the
way up here, we still worry about all of our loved ones. We want to
know that everyone is all right, and that they are happy and healthy
and safe. Up here we are all of these things, so our only wish is that
you are equally as well off.

Lashes, Hobbes and me then went and waited for Billy the Kid. The trip
to the Bridge is a most magical one ..... it is so much more then just
us passing one from place to another. There is a journey we all take
and on this trip, and on this journey we see each and every single
memory we have ever made in our lives. It is filled with wonderful snap
shots of perfect moments in time and swirling with love and laughter
and all of the things that have been captured and kept safe within our
hearts.

Lashes was the first to see Billy and oh how he bounced and his tail
began wagging ... well it wagged so much he knocked Hobbes right on to
his furry little bottom and I laughed so hard that I missed seeing the
tail and got knocked on my butt as well and then we all laughed. Lashes
then stopped and got real quiet like. I asked what was wrong and Lashes
looked right at me and said,

"I can smell him from here, but Pie, he doesn't look like my Billy,
'cause my Billy only has three legs, and this fuzzit has FOUR!!"

My first reaction was to laugh, because I'd been here long enough to
understand that we were made whole again when we arrived at the Bridge,
but Lashes didn't know this and needed my assurance so I said,

"That is your Billy Lashes, see when we leave earth and come here, we
are made as God first saw us, and that is whole and healthy and in
every way safe as possible." and then I looked Lashes right in the
eyes and said, "If you can't trust your sense of smell, then take a
good look at what he is dragging behind him!"

We all had to smile as we saw this light sable boy dragging this red
sleep sack behind him, he was waving madly with one hand and dragging
the bag with the other and the next thing I knew, off ran Lashes and
the two of them took a great tumble as they came in contact with one
and another, and the sleep sack went flying and we were all showered
in colorful crochet fishes and eggs!!!! Lashes then gently licked
Billy on the head and looked at me and said.

"That's *my* Billy Pie, isn't he the greatest?", and I had to agree
whole heartenly!

Billy will be taken to the "Viewing Pool" and you can sure bet he AND
Lashes will be looking in on all of you, because no matter where you
are in life, love follows you, and wraps you within it's warm and
loving embrace. The one thing Billy the Kid wanted you both to know
is that he heard you singing as he left, it is what made his trip far
easier, because as he heard you singing goodbye to him, as we were
there waiting to say hello.

In Love & In Comfort,
Pie O' Pah

[Posted in FML 6021]