When people ask me about you

 When people ask me about you, they usually expect a simple answer.

Maybe your favorite toy.
Your funniest habit.
The way you always knew when it was time for a walk.
And yes...
I remember those things.
I remember them all.
But they are not what I remember most.
What I remember most is how you made me feel.
I remember feeling loved on days when I didn't love myself very much.
I remember coming home exhausted, discouraged, or heartbroken, and seeing your face light up as if I was the greatest thing that had ever happened to you.
You never cared about my mistakes.
You never cared about my bad days.
You never asked me to be anything other than myself.
You simply loved me.
And somehow, that kind of love changes a person forever.
I remember the sound of your breathing when you slept peacefully nearby.
I remember the warmth of your fur beneath my hand.
I remember the way you followed me from room to room, not because you needed anything, but because being together was enough.
I remember feeling less alone.
That's what stays with me.
Not one moment.
Not one memory.
But a feeling.
A feeling that someone was always on my side.
A feeling that no matter what happened in the world, there was a heart beating somewhere nearby that loved me without conditions.
After you left, I worried those feelings would leave too.
But they didn't.
They stayed.
They settled into the deepest parts of me.
And now, when I think of you, I don't just remember the life we shared.
I remember the person I became because of your love.
Kinder.
Softer.
More grateful.
More aware of how precious ordinary moments really are.
Sometimes, when the evening sky begins to glow and the first stars appear overhead, I imagine you beyond the Rainbow Bridge.
Running through endless meadows.
Chasing the wind.
Free from pain.
Free from time.
And I wonder what you remember most about me.
Was it the walks?
The treats?
The games we played?
Or maybe...
Just maybe...
You remember the same thing I do.
That no matter where life took us, we always found our way back to each other.
And perhaps that is the memory that matters most.
Not what we did.
Not where we went.
But how deeply we loved.
So when people ask me what I remember most...
The answer is simple.
I remember being yours.
And I remember you being mine.
Forever loved.
Forever remembered.
Forever part of my heart.