Rest in peace... It's silly that we tell the dead to rest in peace. They're dead. If there's a heaven then there's no need for us to ask that they have peace, unless they are headed to hell I suppose. And, if there's no heaven or hell, then our wish for them to rest in peace goes unnoticed and unheard... because they are dead.
I don't believe that we use the abbreviation R.I.P. to wish the dead well. For when we wish the dead a peaceful rest, we aren't trying to comfort the dearly departed. Either God keeps them comfortable or they're dead; plain and simple. Our one wish when a death occurs is to relieve impending pain, because when a loved one dies, there is no escaping the agony that follows.
My cat and best friend in the entire world became ill after running away for a period of time. She couldn't eat and it was clear she was dying. I held her in my arms as the doctor lulled her into an endless slumber. Her pain was over, but mine was just about to begin. I felt as though someone had reached inside my chest and was strangling my heart with their bare hands. I don't know how long I screamed and cried for, but after a few days in hiding from school, social situations, and the world in general, I had to get back to my mundane reality. I had to go through life without my dearest friend.
I had never felt pain like the pain I felt that day. I was physically tortured through my own sadness. Now there's a cliche metaphoric hole in my heart where my cat has been for all these years. A few days ago, that hole grew in size.
I sat watching as my dog writhed in agony on the living room floor and finally took her last breath. I still hear her screaming in my head and I can't get rid of the vision of her convulsing, tongue flopping out of her mouth once she was gone. It looks just like a cartoon dog playing dead; without any of the comedy, and none of the playing. I held her dead body in my arms as we took her to a vet at nearly 12 o'clock in the morning with her yelp of pain still ringing in my ears. Then my pain started all over again and I've spent the last three consecutive days rocking myself to sleep as I scream into my pillow.
My pets don't need to be told to rest in peace. They are gone. Wherever they are, they are already in peace. The only ones left needing peace are those who are still alive. The R.I.P. is more for me. A plead for my own peace after watching my loved ones leave this world. Rest in peace my dear, dear friends.
