In Memory of our Dove, Paulo

It is with a heavy heart that I am letting you all know that we have lost our beloved dove Paulo. We are not quite certain what has become of Paulo. He has been spending many happy hours in his cage on our screened in porch since it has been so nice outside. On Saturday night, I checked on him and said good-night. On Sunday morning, his cage door was wide open and he was no where to be found. We have searched high and low for him in the hopes that maybe he is just sitting in a tree enjoying the life of a non captive bird. But as the days have passed, our hopes of finding him are growing faint. Paulo was born in captivity and has lived with us over the past nine years, he would not be able to survive in the wild. I inherited him from a lady who taught Pre-K and he became my classroom pet. She had not named him and had labeled his cage "Las Palomas" which is Spanish for doves. I named him Paulo as a take on the word paloma. His coos were a delight to the students I taught both in Texas and here in Tennessee. One of my students who had been displaced from Hurricane Katrina, was so excited to be in our classroom because her middle name is "Dove." Her parents saw it as a sign from God that everything was going to be OK even in such difficult times as losing your home to a hurricane. He also brought our family much peace and joy. Emma-Caroline especially loved talking to him, and taking care of him and has been especially hurt by his disappearance. She even asked our pastor at our church to pray for him. Father Howard graciously prayed with our family for Paulo which brought us all much comfort. We loved Paulo dearly and we will miss our peaceful feathered friend. I can only hope that he is now flying among the heavens with our Father.