I had planned to sit down today and simply share where the June Story Post donation went. I did not expect to write this through tears.
Because of everyone who joined The Story Post for the June mailing, I donated $277 to Muddy Paws Rescue and also covered the processing fees, bringing the total gift to $291.73.
The donation was directed to the SimonSits Veterinary Clinic and made in memory of my sweet Lily Belle Baldwin.
Why I Chose the SimonSits Veterinary Clinic
I have followed Isabel Klee, better known online as Simon Sits, on Instagram for quite some time. Isabel is a writer and dog foster based in Brooklyn, NY. Alongside her fiancé, Jacob, who her followers fondly know as Mr. Isabel, she opens her home to rescue dogs and helps them feel safe, heal and prepare for adoption.
Many of the dogs who come through their home need more than a temporary place to stay. They may be frightened, medically fragile or carrying the effects of neglect. Isabel shares the difficult parts of fostering along with the joyful ones, allowing people to see how much patience, time, medical care and love can be involved in giving a dog another chance.
She recently wrote the memoir Dogs, Boys, and Other Things I’ve Cried About, which tells the story of her life in New York, her relationships and the rescue dogs who helped shape her life. At the center of so much of that story is Simon, the dog who became her own.
Simon has also served as a gentle foster brother to so many of the dogs, and even a few cats, who have passed through their home. He helped frightened animals learn how to exist inside a family. He shared his toys, his space and his people. Sometimes the greatest gift one dog can give another is simply showing them that they are finally safe.
Earlier this year, Muddy Paws Rescue announced the creation of the SimonSits Veterinary Clinic, named in honor of Isabel and Simon. The clinic will help provide medical care to rescue dogs whose futures often depend on someone being willing and able to treat them.
That is where I wanted our June donation to go.
The Hardest Kind of Love
Today, just as I was preparing to write this post, I learned that Isabel and Jacob have made the heartbreaking decision to say goodbye to Simon.
Simon has lived with seizures for years. More recently, he was diagnosed with cancer in his liver. Although they had hoped to have more time, his condition has rapidly declined. The cancer has made his seizures increasingly difficult to control, and the medications needed to help him have left his little body struggling. Isabel shared that they are choosing to let him go peacefully rather than risk allowing his final moments to become frightening or painful.
Anyone who has loved an animal knows the terrible weight of this decision.
We want them to stay because life without them feels impossible. Yet sometimes loving them means taking the pain onto ourselves so they do not have to carry it any longer.
Having made that decision for Lily, my heart breaks for Isabel and Jacob. It is never enough time. It always feels too soon. And no amount of knowing that you are doing the kindest thing makes the goodbye feel less devastating.
Simon has touched the lives of so many people, but his impact reaches far beyond those of us who watched him online. He has been a companion, a teacher, a foster brother and a source of comfort. Because a veterinary clinic now carries his name, his legacy will continue helping rescue dogs receive the medical care they need long after he is gone.
What a beautiful life for one little dog to have lived.
This Donation Came From All of Us
This gift exists because of every person who has joined The Story Post.
Each envelope may begin as a letter, a piece of art, a recipe and a few thoughtful things tucked inside, but together they allow us to create something much larger. A portion of the proceeds from the club is given to animal rescue so that this community can also help care for the animals who give us so much love, joy and innocence.
Our relationships with animals are among the most special we will ever experience. They trust us with their whole little lives. They sit beside us through ordinary days and difficult seasons, when we cry and when we laugh. They make our homes feel warmer, our laughter come more easily and our lives feel less lonely.
And when they leave, they take a piece of our heart with them. But they also leave so much love behind.
Thank you for being part of The Story Post and for making this donation possible. Whether you have been here from the beginning or recently received your first envelope, you helped do this.
Together, we gave $277 to help provide medical care and another chance to dogs who are still waiting for someone to believe their lives are worth saving.
For Simon.
For Lily.
And for every dog still waiting to feel safe, loved and finally home.
With so much love,
Amber
