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<div class=Section1><pre><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>I still cry at the story.. this appears to the longer version.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><font size=2 face="Courier New"><span
style='font-size:10.0pt'>Rescue</span></font></st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Rainbow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place><o:p></o:p></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Unlike most days at <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Rainbow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>, this day dawned cold and gray, damp <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>as a swamp and as dismal as could be imagined. All the recent arrivals <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>were confused and concerned. They had no idea what to think for they <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>had never experienced a day like this before. But the animals who had <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>spent some time waiting for their beloved people knew exactly what was <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>happening and began to gather at the pathway leading to the Bridge to <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>watch. They knew this was something special.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>It wasn't too long before an elderly animal came into view, head hung <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>heavy and low with tail dragging along the ground. The other animals on <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>the pathway...the ones who had been at <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Rainbow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> for a while...knew <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>the story of this sad creature immediately. They had seen it happen far too<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>many times.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Although it was obvious the animal's heart was leaden and he was <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>totally overcome with emotional pain and hurt, there was no sign of <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>injury or any illness. Unlike the pets waiting at the Bridge, this dog <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>had not been restored to his prime. He was full of neither health nor <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>vigor. He approached slowly and painfully, watching all the pets who <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>were by now watching him. He knew he was out of place here. This was no <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>resting place for him. He felt instinctively that the sooner he could <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>cross over, the happier he would be. But alas, as he came closer to the <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Bridge, his way was barred by the appearance of an Angel who spoke <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>softly to the old dog and apologized sorrowfully, telling him that he <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>would not be able to pass. Only those animals who were with their <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>special people could pass over the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Rainbow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. And he had no <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>special beloved people...not here at the Bridge nor on Earth below.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>With no place else to turn, the poor elderly dog looked toward the <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>fields before the Bridge. There, in a separate area nearby, he spotted <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>a group of other sad-eyed animals like himself...elderly and infirm. <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Unlike the pets waiting for their special people, these animals weren't <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>playing, but simply lying on the green grass, forlornly and miserably <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>staring out at the pathway leading to the Bridge. The recent arrival <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>knew he had no choice but to join them. And so, he took his place among <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>them, just watching the pathway and waiting.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>One of the newest arrivals at the Bridge, who was waiting for his <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>special people, could not understand what he had just witnessed and <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>asked one of the pets who had been there for some time to explain it to him.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>"That poor dog was a rescue, sent to the pound when his owner grew <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>tired of him. They way you see him now, with graying fur and sad, <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>cloudy eyes, was exactly the way he was when he was put into the <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>kennels. He never, ever made it out and passed on only with the love <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>and comfort that the kennel workers could give him as he left his <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>miserable and unloved existence on Earth for good. Because he had no <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>family or special person to give his love, he has nobody to escort him <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>across the Bridge."<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>The first animal thought about this for a minute and then asked, "So <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>what will happen now?"<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>As he was about to receive his answer, the clouds suddenly parted and <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>the all-invasive gloom lifted. Coming toward the Bridge could be seen a <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>single figure...a person who, on Earth, had seemed quite ordinary...a <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>person who, just like the elderly dog, had just left Earth forever. <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>This figure turned toward a group of the sad animals and extended <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>outstretched palms. The sweetest sounds they had ever heard echoed <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>gently above them and all were bathed in a pure and golden light. <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>Instantly, each was young and healthy again, just as they had been in <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>the prime of life.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>From within the gathering of pets waiting for their special people, a <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>group of animals emerged and moved toward the pathway. As they came <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>close to the passing figure, each bowed low and each received a tender <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>pat on the head or a scratch behind the ears. Their eyes grew even <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>brighter as the figure softly murmured each name. Then, the <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>newly-restored pets fell into line behind the figure and quietly <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>followed this person to the Bridge, where they all crossed together.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>The recent arrival who had been watching, was amazed. "What<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>happened?"<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>"That was a rescuer," came the answer. "That person spent a<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>lifetime <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>trying to help pets of all kinds. The ones you saw bowing in respect <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>were those who found new homes because of such unselfish work. They <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>will cross when their families arrive. Those you saw restored were ones <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>who never found homes. When a rescuer arrives, they are permitted to <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>perform one, final act of rescue. They are allowed to escort those poor <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>pets that couldn't find a place on Earth across the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Rainbow</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. You <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>see, all animals are special to them...just as they are special to all <o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>animals."<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>"I think I like rescuers," said the recent arrival.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>"So does God!," was the reply.<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></pre><pre><font
size=2 face="Courier New"><span style='font-size:10.0pt'>--Author Unknown--<o:p></o:p></span></font></pre>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>Helena Poist<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>Proplanner<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><st1:Street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on"><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>2321 North Loop Drive</span></font></st1:address></st1:Street><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Ames</span></font></st1:City>,
<st1:State w:st="on">IA</st1:State> <st1:PostalCode w:st="on">50010</st1:PostalCode></st1:place><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>helena@proplanner.com<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>515-296-7526<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>fax: 515-296-3229<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoAutoSig><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>http://www.proplanner.com<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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