Celebrating Beau
Diddley van Wyk
21 February 2000 - 18 March 2009
After Beau’s passing, I asked
people who knew him to send me some words to celebrate his
life. I asked them to describe to me something that made
Beau special to each of them. What made them smile, I
asked.
It’s been a few months since I made that request. Every
time I picked up my editor to start writing this page, I
just couldn’t... But some 4 1/2 months later, I’ve summoned
the courage to collect these loving words here.
Now, those who knew Beau know he was special beyond
words--an amazing dog in every possible way. So I hope
these words help bring a smile to all who read them. After
all, it’s the memories that count, not the words.
To all who participated here, thank you ever so
much.
So, in no particular order (except my own), here’s what
Beau’s friends had to say about Beau:
“Beau was truly a remarkable friend to me. He could make me
smile with nothing more than a glance. I’d have to say,
though, that the one thing that most made me smile was his
enthusiasm. He had a zest for life that was awe inspiring.
The intensity he’d show at the mere prospect of a
tee-are-ee-ay-tee was palpable. His “HELLL YESSSSS!” bark
and wag were unmistakable. Heaven forbid anyone--or any
THING--got in his way when he was offered a treat. I’d
invariably tell him to ‘climb in bed’ to receive his treat,
and he’d bowl over anything in his path. The sheer
enthusiasm was unbridled and glorious to behold. It would
brighten up any day, no matter what. I’ll miss you forever,
Mister Beau Beau.”
-- Ken van Wyk, 2 August 2009
“My special memory of Beau will always be the way he waited
at the table for his Ouma pancakes. And like I said
earlier, he always spent extra time in the backyard erasing
Yorkie smells!
He truly was the first big dog I fell in love with ( I will
always like small doggies best). And most of all, the
way that he really adored you! Anybody who could love
my son like Beau did will always be special to me!
We will never forget this special Basset Hound!”
-- Jo Van Wyk, 18 March 2009
“We had been whelping puppies for several hours and thought
*maybe* Rosie had delivered all of the puppies. We
were sitting on the couch at 2:00 AM eating cold spaghetti
(of all things), listening to our favorite whelping music –
country music’s Vince Gill. I looked over and was
admiring the puppies all snuggled up to their sleeping
Momma. I commented on what a great job Rosie had done
when all of a sudden there was this beautiful red and white
boy – just sliding out of Rosie. That was Beau – such
a sweet and laid-back puppy that he never even woke up his
Momma when he was born.”
-- Pat “Granny Pat” Alton, 18 March 2009
“It was late July 2000. Beau was 5 months old and was
making his debut in a Puppy Match in Canfield Ohio.
Ken took Beau into the ring; I took Hoagie, Beau’s
brother. Hoagie had some prior experience playing the
dog show game, so he went first. We thought that Beau
would be more likely to follow Hoagie around the
ring. Well, Beau had other ideas. Beau
jumped! He twirled! He tried to grad Hoagie’s
tail! Then he did what bassets do best – he went
*flat basset*. No amount of coaxing, pleading,
encouraging or even liver treats was going to make Beau
move. He had decided that he was done with this
game. Ken did the only thing a well trained basset
slave could do; he picked Beau up and carried him around
the ring, following along behind Hoagie. “
--Sandi Wittenberg, 18 March 2009
“From the first time I looked into Beau's eyes, I saw a
being that exuded nothing but good. He showed
compassion, love, kindness, friendship, and clearly would
not hurt a fly. In the doggy world, he was a real
saint, a tribute to all that is good. In the silent
bonds of really true friendship, he was my pal, and I shall
never forget him. He will be sadly missed...”
-- Peter Van Wyk, 19 March 2009
“I remember when I first met Beau just a few months after
he was born (during one of his many adventures to
Columbus). I recall thinking to myself, "Sure, he's
cute now, but once he gets bigger and slobberier Ken's
gonna have a fun time pinning me to the ground and letting
him goober all over my face." (Elvis and Ken were
fond of teaming up and subjecting me to Basset goober
torture.) In the end, Beau only got me once, and it
was self-inflicted. I thank him for exercising
incredible restraint in the many times that we shared the
floor together after eating and drinking to excess (me, not
Beau) on countless Friday nights.
People who know me know that I'm not a dog person.
I'm sure that at some level, Beau knew this too.
He respectfully resisted the constant pressure from
others to "give Sean a kiss!" and "go shake next to Sean!".
Still, every time I came through the door he would
run over greet me with a wagging tail. Even a cat
person can appreciate that!
Of all the dogs that I have ever known, Beau was far and
away my favorite. I'm gonna miss him.”
-- Sean Eidemiller, 19 March 2009
“Beau was a wonderful little creature. We all loved
him so much. One of my favorite memories of him is
the one from the Outer Banks. Normally, he was pretty
laid back, but this day, we all went down to the beach, and
Beau ran and ran. He was so happy, running with his
boy and Maggie along the surf. I will always remember
the laughing expression on his kind little face. I
hope he has a beach to run on.”
-- Ingrid Van Wyk, 19 March 2009
“Just wanted to add my notes about Beau. He was such a
lovely and fun puppy to be with and I will really miss him.
I have to share the story of when I was staying at your
house and watching Beau and Maggie. I was on the couch and
apparently in his spot. So he was barking at me for a while
and I just ignored him. Then he went over to the door and
rang the bell to go out. So I felt so bad because I thought
he was barking at me get off of his spot on the couch, but
he wanted to go out. So, I get up and open the door for him
to go out and he jumps up on my spot on the couch. He was a
pretty smart dog.”
-- Patricia Zechman, 25 March 2009
“Over the
past few days I have struggled with putting words together
to convey what Beau has meant to me, and to describe those
“things he did” that made me happy. Part of the struggle is
the fear I won’t capture them all and describe them well
enough. The other struggle is dealing with the pain his
loss has brought, and triggering yet again, the tears that
so quickly appear. While tears are associated with sadness,
(and there will always be sadness over the loss of Beau),
they also indicate how much something or someone has
touched our lives. I knew that when he’d leave us all I
would be heartbroken, but was totally unprepared for the
reality of what that meant. Beau didn’t just touch my life;
he was part of my life.
As I
wipe my tears away, the following is my attempt to put into
words as best I can, memories that I never want to forget,
and for me, characteristics that made Beau…….. Beau!
Since meeting Beau for the first time as a puppy, he
charmed me with those warm eyes and soft fur and quickly
found his way into my heart. As he grew, his warm
personality emerged, and his drool knew no boundaries! We
all had fun teasing Sean about the drooling – even gifting
him with his very own jar of “Beau Goobers.”
The last few years of memories are especially strong and
endearing. I suspect partly due to his illness, but mostly
because of the years together and experiences shared that
made our relationship a bonding and trusting one.
The memories are many, but here are my favorites:
- Beau’s Ears – They were “Spots of Softness” I enjoyed petting. In later years he loved when I would rub his ears, turning his head into my hand requesting more whenever I’d stop.
- The singing – The deep baritone of the voice, and how his mouth would wrinkle up while singing.
- Beau’s chin on my knee just after eating dinner, breathing warm air on you in quiet anticipation of any leftovers.
- The enjoyment of sharing a cup of tea with him, literally.
- Beau draping himself over my feet while I was sitting in a chair in the living room, or at the dinner table.
- His welcoming bark, and how he promptly rolled onto his back exposing his belly for a belly rub.
- The “thump, thump, thump” sound of his tail against the floor as he wagged it in greeting when I walked into a room.
- Watching him leave after an evening in my home with his “bling on” flashing for all to see.
- The morning last April when he’d been ill, I awoke and he stood up on the bed. Instead of wanting to go out back, he walked closer to me, laid back down, resting his head on my arm. It was a moment where I was convinced there was no human or hound more relaxed than the two of us.
I found great comfort in going through photos I have captured of Beau over the last few years. I realized that these captured many experiences and moments of happiness he brought to those around him, and that many of them might better explain what these inadequate words are trying to convey. While I could fill a book with these pictures, I am enclosing only one here. One that clearly stood out as it shows those beautiful warm eyes of his. Eyes that I will miss getting lost in…..”
-- Lisa Blanchard, 21 March 2009
