Val's favorite color was purple. I love that she had on a purple coat in this photo.
Val was a friend through my world of dogs, Salukis in fact.
Val & her husband, Steven created beautiful dogs out of the kennel name of Laa Yudaani Salukis.
They weren't as interested in showing dogs as they were in Open Field Coursing - which is where you set the dogs free to test their hunting skills.
More than that though, Val was an amazing person of amazing strength & preseverence.
She fought cancer for many years, now the fight is over.
I truly took it for granted that she'd live forever...
Val, I love you & will miss you dearly. Your soul lives on in my & the hearts of others.
Val used to work at a nursery, her passion were cactus blooms. She lived in New Mexico with her husband, Steven. I was hoping to take a trip to NM sometime this year to visit. I'm sad that this won't come to be now.
Below are photos of her & Steven's dogs, along with some cactus blooms that she has taken photos of. All photo credit of the dogs & flowers go to Val. I borrowed them from her facebook page. I hope Steven doesn't mind. I just wanted to take a little time to share Val, to treasure her, to remember her by...
I especially like this photo.
The Scissortail Flycatcher showed back up yesterday. He brought his mate. I think they are nesting somewhere within feet of my RV! I'd like to think that Val sent them. At any rate, I will think of her each time I see them as I know she'd adore their beauty.
In Texas, I found out they are called The Bird of Paradise - quite appropriate! Such beautiful little birds.
And they got close enough for me to get decent shots of!
I did a little more research on them to see how you could tell the difference between the male & female.
The female's tail is 2'' shorter than the males is. They have REALLY LONG tails!
Female Scissortail Flycatcher
Male Scissortail Flycatcher -- note the difference in their tail lengths.
I will think of Val each time I see these beauties. I hope to see little paradise babies someday soon!
I'm going to go clean out the old bird feeder to fill it.
But they are known to be invaluable for bug catchers! They'll get plenty of that here.
~As always be kind to your pets, clean up after them on your travels & respect your neighbor~
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Anonymous comments for this page have been disabled. If anyone wishes to comment further, please contact me (salukiz(at)hotmail.com) & I will be very happy to add your comment. Sorry, I had to reset to rid of the anon tab due to way too many spams. :-/
This page will stay up forever!
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Anonymous comments for this page have been disabled. If anyone wishes to comment further, please contact me (salukiz(at)hotmail.com) & I will be very happy to add your comment. Sorry, I had to reset to rid of the anon tab due to way too many spams. :-/
This page will stay up forever!
My condolences to you on the loss of your dear friend.
ReplyDeleteOur condolences on the loss of your friend, she sounds like she was a great person.
ReplyDeleteErik and Ronda
Sorry about the loss of you friend. What a nice tribute to her.
ReplyDeleteA lovely tribute to your friend. So sorry you won't get to see her again.
ReplyDeleteSorry about your friend, Cyn... very nice tribute
ReplyDeleteBeautiful flowers and birds
Thank you everyone for your comments. It's really appreciated.
ReplyDeleteOne of our mutual friends wasn't able to comment, so I told her I'd add her's here too. I've opened anon for those that aren't able to comment in any other way as many friends of Val's will be viewing this page too.
From a mutual Saluki Friend - Caroline Coile to Val & all:
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this. Although we all knew Val's time was probably limited, her attitude made us tend to ignore the inevitable. Occasionally she'd tell us about something that would make you wonder how she wasn't just lying in bed moaning, but instead going to work or out in the field or even taking a trip across country, and we'd think we must have heard wrong, or maybe we didn't understand, or more likely--Val was one damn brave woman who could have complained but NOT ONCE did she---and sometimes now maybe I wish she had...
Wonderful tribute TexCyn. May your friend rest in peace.
ReplyDeleteSorry Cindy to hear about the loss of your dear friend. She would be proud of you with this website. My thoughts are with you and her family.
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to hear about your friend Val. Her pups are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice tribute!
Sorry to hear about the loss of your Friend Val, her dogs are beautiful and blooms are very pretty.
ReplyDeleteVal was my FRIEND, my rock, and truly the bravest person I have ever known. She never gave up, never gave in, never stopped. My heart goes out to Steven, and lost Bisa. Cacti, rainbows, strong hares, fast Salukis, puppy kisses, never give up, never give in...FIGHT and always, always always LIVE.
ReplyDeleteThank-you Val, I am a better person because of you.
I know she loved you very much, Mary Beth. You were a good friend to her. I am so sorry for your loss. ~Carol Rivette~
DeleteVal was a brave and strong lady whom I admired. When she learned that I, too, had cancer, she was one of the first to write and offer support, advice, and to keep in touch - to egg me on to fight the battle with courage and not give in at all. I would receive emails out of the blue asking how I was but never telling me how she was. I'd have to ask her about that. Her first priority was to give me hope and strength and she did. She chose to continue to live her life as normally as she could, to not let the cancer change her course of loving all that meant so much to her. She will live on in the hearts of all whose life she touched. God speed Val.
ReplyDeleteVal,
ReplyDeleteYou were a good and faithful friend. Of all the people I know, your bravery and courage stands out as an example for me to follow in my journey through life. I will miss the beautiful desert flower photos that you would send. You waited for them to blossom with such patience. You would write about them as though they were people. You took some spectacular photos of the dogs and your surroundings that would give a feeling of us being there even though we live many miles away. I would laugh at your stories of yard saling with your friend, seeking that undescovered treasure still out there. Even though you were feeling unwell, your love of salukis would drive you to travel all of the way to Kentucky to attend National. I am sad that we won't see you again on this plane of existance but I believe I will see you again someday. I so look forward to that. ~Carol Rivette~
The last time I saw Valerie was at the National..... sorry it was the last time. Godspeed, Valerie.... you deserve the best in heaven. elaine
ReplyDeleteGreat tribute to your friend Val and very sorry to hear about your loss.
ReplyDeleteCindy, you are in my heart, thoughts and prayers at the passing of your beloved Val. Your post and the comments here by those who knew her are beautiful. Thank you for sharing her with us. Love and hugs.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry for your loss.
ReplyDeleteTo read all these comments by Vals friends truly touches my heart. Val spoke so highly of her coursing friends and all the adventures and good times she had with all of you. We would sit in my kitchen, or out by the pond and she would tell me all about the dogs, the names, the heritage of each and she would laugh and the light in her eyes shone through as she spoke about all of you. She loved going to Kentucky, and would him and haw every year as to whether or not she would go...of course she always did, and was so happy for doing so. Thank you, all of you for sharing a part of her I never knew except for her stories. I miss her and will carry her in my heart. Thank you Cyn, for creating this page.
ReplyDeleteMy deepest sympathy on your loss. True friends are definitely a treasure.
ReplyDeleteIt was a moving tribute. The dogs and blooms were lovely.
Thank you Cyn for doing such a nice page so we can ponder our thoughts about Val. She was always good to Dori and I and we will miss her very much. Having trouble fathoming I won't hear that sweet unmistakable voice call my name out of a crowd so I could turn and look for my friend in purple. Truly a good soul, one of the best, one that will not be forgotten.
ReplyDeleteOh, Cyn, so sorry to hear that you have lost such a dear friend. Each friend is precious.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry you lost your friend - it sounds like she had a very full, interesting, happy life, and now she will be here in spirit. Her dogs are beautiful, as well as the cactus blooms.
ReplyDeleteThat's exciting about the flycatcher. It looks like they have a regular tail, and then that extra length makes them so unusual. It's fun to get good shots of these pretty birds, isn't it? :)