Bringing Home Your Loved One
by Nicole Culp

On my mantelpiece sits my beloved dog, and once best friend, Bailey. No longer will she greet me at the door with the untiring exuberance only an animal can project. No longer will she lie at my feet at the end of a long day. No longer can I reach out and caress her warm body. But she is still with me. I can feel her. She has been lovingly turned into a piece of art that I enjoy each day when I come home. I am comforted just knowing that she is still with me.

Too often I have been to cemeteries to say “goodbye” to loved ones, only to feel the emptiness of their absence once leaving their buried remains behind. When Bailey died, I wanted to keep her close to me, but the urn holding her remains held no warmth or character and couldn’t reflect who she really was. That’s where Toronto-based artist, Anita __, stepped in and brought Bailey back home to me.