This is Muffet before she got old. Before she went deaf. Before she became blind. She's not with us anymore. And that makes me sad still. She passed away in her sleep a year and a half ago. It was two weeks before Christmas. The same day I received a rejection on my manuscript. The same day my husband was laid off work. What a day! But that's another story.

Still, I had known that Muffet couldn't last much longer. I had actually been praying about two years for her. I hope that doesn't sound strange to you. But it's true. I was worried about her end. I wanted it to be as gentle as it could be. I also worried about my children. My son was so sweet to Muffet. She would make it up to the top of the stairs looking for me. Then she'd stand at the top of the stairs and bark for someone to come get her because she would never come down the stairs. Never. Not even when she was young. I tried to teach her one time, but she shook all over. So often, my son would climb the stairs to go get her and carry her down. Toward the end, she wouldn't even be able to make it up the one step into our house through the back door. My son was often the one letting her in, helping her. So I worried about how my children would react, especially if I had to make a decision about her life.

So that cold day in December when I came home after a full day of shopping with my children, with tears streaking all of our faces, I knew it was answered prayer. But some prayers are really hard.

In fact, all the of answers we received that day was answered prayer. I wanted the right publisher at the right time for my manuscript. I was being told, "Not this one." My husband and I had been praying for three years about his job. This was our answer.

Answers to prayers aren't always easy. But we knew, God was watching over us. God had a reason and a purpose.

So was it silly to pray for my sweet little companion? No. You see, God cares about even the littlest. And if He cares about our birds and fish and cats and dogs, how much more does He care about you and me?