Today we heard that Kaylee died. Kaylee the miracle-worker dog.In dog-lover terms, she had passed over the Rainbow Bridge.

Kaylee was the first of the many dogs we fostered over several years. It was the success we had with Kaylee that inspired us to foster many other dogs until they were placed in their “forever homes,” but Kaylee was the first success story.

My wife worked in a unique business environment. Employees routinely brought their dogs to work, and as long as they were well behaved, they were welcomed by the whole crew – with the possible exception of Rob. Rob was a talented and skilled video editor, but he was regularly crabby. He was nicknamed “Cranky Rob.”

Shortly after Kaylee came into our care, my wife took her to work, and introduced her to the staff. Together, they went from office to office, workspace to workspace, until they came to Rob’s cramped office.

Then, the miracle began.

When it came time to move on, for some unexplainable reason, Kaylee refused to leave Rob’s office. Kaylee settled in as if to say, “I’ve found my human.” Cranky Rob and the orphan dog had immediately bonded. By the end of the day, Rob approached my wife and announced, “I want to adopt this dog.”

And the rest, as they say, is history. The love that they shared transformed Rob. As much as Kaylee needed Rob, he needed her, and Rob seemed to rediscover a softer, more loving side of himself that had somehow gotten lost. He became much more agreeable, more outgoing. All because of a dog.

Many of us who have shared our lives with a special pet know the feeling. The affection we feel from our special companions, and the love we develop for them, reflect the image we imagine, but fail to accomplish, in our efforts to live a Christian life.

We all have a mental image of what we hope a heavenly existence should be. Perhaps the rainbow bridge concept is closest to our hopes. When we lose one of our treasured companions, we cannot imagine the love that we have experienced just ceasing to exist. We believe that a love that pure must somehow continue to exist.

But logic raises its ugly head. Does that love survive death?

Over the years, we too have suffered the pain of losing a special pet, and my wife, who seems to have a special ability to sense energies from beyond death’s door, has had a brief encounter with two of those who have traveled over that bridge. Twice, she has had a moment when an image appeared to her of two of those special pets who appeared to visit long enough to reassure her that they are well – on the other side if that bridge.

That bridge may not exist in a physical form, but it surely exists in the form of a message from our Creator in a language we can understand. Love survives, and exists in its purest form – just over that bridge.