Perhaps, kind readers, you may remember a column which appeared February 3, written by my special “guest columnist,” our daughter Mary Bart. It was titled “They make our lives whole.”

In this column she wrote about fostering animals. She considered herself a “foster failure” when it came to Penny. Her beloved Penny.

By “failure” she meant that she couldn’t just be Penny’s foster home. No way. Penny wasn’t going back.

Mary Bart wrote that, “One Sunday I was approached by our Foster Program Coordinator to take a dog that was heartworm positive, in heat and older, into foster. Knowing all my dogs were healthy, friendly and fixed, I made a safe place for this girl to receive treatment.

“When I entered our isolation ward to look for Penny, I found her sitting patiently as if to say, ‘What took you so long?’ She immediately wrapped her paws around my neck as if to say ‘thank you’ . . .”

Mary Bart then went on to tell of the wonderful pet Penny became, and of their many years together.

Toward the end of the column she wrote, “Penny is now 16 years young. She’s grayed, lost part of her hearing, eyesight isn’t what it used to be and some days are better than others. She may pace a lot, go to the bathroom at all hours of the night, and be a lot needier than she was eight years ago, but she is still the sweetest dog that rescued me. Yes, she rescued me!”

Then, near the end of her column, before she encouraged readers to “Please consider opening your heart and home to a shelter dog or cat,” Mary Bart wrote, “As all stories must come to an end, I realize my time to say goodbye to Penny is rapidly approaching. My heart aches thinking about not hearing her footsteps on my wood floors, but I know the time she has been on this earth she has made me a better person, and I am confident that I gave her a great life.

“If I can leave you with one thought, it is that a second chance can make all the difference. Penny wasn’t the most adoptable, but by far the most grateful.”

Penny Lane Houston, believed to be a Manchester Terrier (mostly), crossed over the Rainbow Bridge the morning of Monday, June 1.

We’ve all cried.

As we always do.