Message #48901

[Joey Silver / Si Zhouyi 義周司]

Dear Jo (and David),

    Andy was such a wonderful, welcoming dog. I really enjoyed him when I visited you all.
   I had a few blocks of grey Kilkenny Limestone (they call it 'Kilkenny Marble'), and we cut them up to form smaller blocks, 2 ft. X 1 ft. X 1 ft. high, and put each canine's name, IKC name, DOB & DOD on his or her stone.

   Laddie, the first one to go and be buried in my little hidden garden, within a Japanese style fence, near my Meditation Garden in the style of the Ryoan-ji in Kyoto (but not wide enough, sadly. You should not be able to take in the whole breadth of the raked gravel area in one view; but I wouldn't cut down trees.) got a Granite stone 3 ft. wide X 2 ft. X 1 ft high, with LADDIE, 'Rainsford Son' (his IKC name), DOB & DOD, and, I think (it's lashing rain and 10:46pm, so I'm not going out to check!),
a phrase like "Loyal Friend".

  But all the country houses have such areas for the beloved small pets who pass away. But the late John Ault and his lovely widow Penny Treembungroong Ault, really beat all of us in Ireland!

   On the grounds of their Chiangmai estate, they have a mound near the front of the house, which is about 2-3 feet above the surrounding lawn; it's where they buried their pet 'rescue elephant'! 

    Best,
Joey