Goodbye Mellow Yellow

Mellow Yellow - that was the name we decided we would name our new Golden Retriever puppy, even before we picked him up that night. Yes, it actually came from the Donovan’s nearly chart topping hit of the same name in 1966. Mellow Yellow was his moniker, but he was anything but mellow.

He seemed to possess boundless energy and his favorite activities always had something to do with water. He loved to play tug of war with socks. That was his favorite toy – especially my eldest son’s dirty, smelly socks. He would wait until the middle of the night and sneak into my son’s bedroom and steal away with his prize. We eventually got wise to his ways and just gave him old socks tied together, but if left lying around, he seemed to prefer the ‘fresh’ ones left on the floor next to the tennis shoes.

Over the years Mellow Yellow became too long of a name and we shortened it to Melvin… then to Mel. He became my son’s confidant and close companion over the next ten years. He loved the bed of my son’s pickup truck, but we don’t really know why. It wasn’t because he always got to go for a ride in it, even though he often did, running from side to side for who knows what reason. But Mel just liked to be in the pickup bed. While my son worked outside, Mel liked to sleep in the truck bed and sleeping there was one of the few times that he was really mellow. Another one of his other passions was tennis balls – he loved to chase, chew and collect tennis balls. We don’t know if he really lost them in his kennel, but he always seemed to have a dozen or so ‘hidden’ so he would never be without.

He sired five litters and was a proud and protective father. Over the years his muzzle slowly began to turn white, but he was still strong and fast and ran like the wind. Recently my son decided to move and where he was moving, Mel could not follow, so he put this ad on Craig’s List…

“His name is Mellow Yellow, I have had him since he was 6 weeks old, and I am moving and cannot take him with me :( He is loyal and fun loving, everything a Golden should be. He is AKC registered and comes from a pedigreed background, even a few blue ribbon winners in his blood line. I am looking for a good home for him and the price doesn’t matter to me as long as he will be cared for.”

Shakespeare wrote that ‘parting is such sweet sorrow’ and this will be true for my son and his dog as well. He has found a good home for his four-legged companion and now they both move on to a new chapter in life.

This month I will say goodbye to my fellow student chaplains as we finish a yearlong extended unit of Clinical Pastoral Education. Our parting will also be sweet sorrow. Where our paths will take us, truly God only knows. Memories of our time together will stay with me for the rest of my life. Just like my son’s memories of Mel will be with him always – sweet sorrow, but not unhappiness – because we know that each of us is continuing to journey along our paths.

To whom or to what have you said goodbye to recently? Saying goodbye is a natural part of life. Shakespeare’s words remind us the reason that the sorrow is sweet is because they will be missed. As people of faith, we look forward to a day when there are no more goodbyes and no more tears of sweet sorrow. Until that day we have but memories of those to whom we have parted ways.

Goodbye Mel…