What's in a name?

On Facebook this morning I saw a question: "How did your pet get their name"? This reminded me of my 2 long-time companions, Topaz and Spirit. Topaz (a yellow labrador), was born in my lap and was my best friend and constant companion until her death at the age of 12. Naturally I, as well as my family was devastated. Now comes the "strange" part. We live on 10 acres and rarely see stray dogs since the area where we live has strict animal control regulations. About 2 weeks after Topaz died my kids came running in to tell me they found a dog. Of course, my heart was not ready for another dog and I was still mourning the loss of my BFF. However, they came walking up with thin almost white lab mix begging to keep her. They fed her and played with her for a day or two, but we had a weekend trip planned and I said they could not pen her up since she might belong to someone. I told them if she was still around when we returned they could keep her. I was positive she would be gone, yet when we pulled into the carport there she sat looking for all the world like she had lived there all her life! As I got to know this beautiful young (with an old-soul) girl I became undoubtedly convinced that Topaz sent this girl to us to heal our hearts. So-her name became "Spirit", short for Spirit of Topaz. It fit her beautifully-as she also had a beautiful spirit! She became a devoted family dog (even following my daughter to school) until her death at the age of 13!