Lived Her Best Life.
I still remember like it was yesterday, the day our friends asked if Mike and I would be Rosie’s Retirement home. It was a little over 8 years ago, to the day, she came to live down on Back Bay.
Rosie was bought at an auction, before she was a year old, no one really knows her story or her age, but from the day her first family brought her home, she became ‘The Princess’. She was loved and cared for by a beautiful family, that had three little girls and Rosie was the center of their world. Over the years Rosie gave birth to 4 calves, as well as an endless abundance of milk to many families. As the girls grew older, farming was not a priority as the girls were leaving home, Rosie was aging and they were hopeful we would say yes.
Mike and I looked endlessly for the right barn, hours of thought went into how to make a suitable retirement home for the old girl. We found the perfect barn (her castle) with the help of friends we were able to make our field suitable for a princess.
The day finally arrived, Rosie was arriving, I was nervous. A year before, I decided to get chickens, which Mike always said, ‘chickens are the gateway to livestock’!! Well, here we are, just like that, we are farmers. What could possibly go wrong?? I am pretty sure the neighbors all thought I was crazy (I am, just a little), we were going to have a pet cow.
Rosie settled in quickly, she was approximately 10 at the time, she was full of life, she would run and frolic down through the field, rub up against all the sappy trees, eat all the green grass she could find. Over the years she had a routine, every morning you would see her standing down in the field watching the sunrise. Rosie was a presence, she was solid, she was pure magic. It is easy looking back and realizing that she would always life live on her terms, which I will call complete stubbornness, (I personally understand, stubborn). She was going to have it her way, ALL THE TIME. She LOVED attention and our world revolved around her.
She loved parties, she loved kids, she loved having everyone over to see her magical kingdom. The Garden Club would come spend the day, they would paint watercolors of her in her barn, feed her romaine lettuce and kale, while surrounded by chickens, birds, butterflies, deer, she was the magic piece that made our property ‘heaven on earth’.
Over the years Mike and Miss Rosie had a very special relationship, he adored her and the feeling was 100% mutual. He would clean her barn, she would throw around the wheel barrow, she would stand endlessly in his way, he would try to have conversations about why she needed to keep out of his way, but she never really listened, and he knew she would not. Rosie had a way of ‘knowing’ who was coming down the driveway, and it never failed, the minute Mike was home, she was waiting at the gate for him. Every evening Mike would take her out 4 pink lady apples (her favorite) and he would brush her, there was nothing better than having her coat groomed by the man she loved.
Rosie was known for only eating ‘approved’ hay, and I assure you, we traveled far to get the hay that she would eat. I had brought home enough ‘unaccpetable’ bales of hay, that she would go a week without touching what was there, if anyone ever wondered if a cow can give a ‘stink-eye’, YES, YES they can.
Having a #1100 pet also comes with a few complications. While Rosie was mostly respectful of the fence, which was basically pretty ribbons that held her in, periodically I would have to turn the electric on, once she figured out there was green grass up the road, she would wander the neighborhood. She loved visiting the neighbors, she loved nibbling their apple trees, sometimes I think she was looking for love, and sometimes she would just like to leave free fertilizer around. A few mornings, I would get a random text that Rosie was sleeping on their lawn, or I would look out and someone was walking her home. Usually, once a year I would get a call at work as Rosie was spotted on snap chat visiting the neighbors barn, and I would rush out of work leaving a patient on my table to get Rosie back home. She was special, she was funny and she was going to always have it on her terms. One summer morning, when I went to say good morning, she had about 20 porcupine quills sticking right out of the top of her head!!!! ( A cowicorn!!) I spent the day feeding her apples, and chasing her around with pliers, at the end of the day, I avoided an embarrassing call to the vet!!
Rosie had a daily routine, in the summer she would lay in one spot down in the field, I always said, “that is her power spot, she's charging the earth”, over the years she had worn the spot bare. She would meet the sunrise every morning, and her coat would glow orange the second the sun hit her. She had the most beautiful brown eyes, and in the midst of fall, the black on her face was shaped as a beautiful heart, you could just feel her love by looking at her, it made you feel alive. We should all feel that alive. Although, a few of our trees, that she loved to landscape did not feel alive by the time she was done, we learned to love her attention to detail and tree trimming. She loved our family walks, she loved snacks, she would always amuse us and let Lester take her rope, she just accepted this was part of deal, you just feel how much she loved the two little ‘black sheep’. She was the energy that brought us all together, she was pure love.
I noticed over the summer, she was starting to slow down, she was starting to look more ‘hippy’ and elderly. In all honesty, there was always a part of me, that worried about her through the winter. In the last couple of weeks, she knocked down the fence, roamed the neighborhood, pruned some trees, went for walks, ate plenty of apples, then she decided she was tired.
In her last week, she hung out in her barn, surrounded by us, Lester and Randy did not leave her side. As Rosie always made sure life was on her terms, she decided it was her time to go. It was a very, very hard week, it made me question all the things in my life, reminded me life is short. I spent nights with her in the barn, in the brutal cold, discussing the meaning of life. I sat with her, knowing she was in charge, I was just holding space for her, this time I will cherish for the rest of my life. Rosie went to heaven on 12/01/2021, she went peacefully, she was never in distress, she spent her last day soaking up the sunshine with the boys laying right by her, heaven put on a beautiful display for her, as rainbows were glowing next to the sun, she was loved by all the divine. I have cried many tears, happy tears.
In reflecting on her life, it was such an honor to give her a place where she could live out her life. She allowed me to be in her presence, know exactly what it feels like to experience unconditional love and know the gentleness of God’s creatures. She brought life to our home, she could make you smile with her goofy ways. She was a complete diva, she was a princess. She will forever hold a very special place in my heart, as I loved sharing her with the world, I love she touched so many lives, she was and always will be the anchor in my life to guide me back to the simple things. Sunshine, green grass, be present in each moment and share your love with the world. Rosie taught me, just to be me, shine no matter what. Thank you for reminding me to enjoy the sunrise every single day. She was joy, she was love, she was sunshine on a cloudy day. We laid her to rest, in her ‘power spot’, she will forever be remembered in our hearts, the love she shared will forever be a part of my soul. Your physical presence will be forever missed, but your energy will live on.
Thank you all for being part of our lives and loving Rosie, and sharing her love. I promise you, she would love every single one of you.
“You can’t skip chapters, that is not how life works. You have to read every line, meet every character. You won’t enjoy all of it. Hell, some chapters will make you cry for weeks. You will read things you don't want to read, you will have moments when you don't want the pages to end. But you have to keep going. Stories keep the world revolving. Live yours, don't miss out.” ~unknown
“Let all that you do be done in love”
1 Corinthians 16:14
