It was a sad day when we realized Bluey wasn’t just taking a long nap at the bottom of his fish tank. He was our first pet, and although we knew he wouldn’t live forever, his death still caused a deep grief.

For almost 2 years, Bluey not only made us a family of 5, but he also taught us so much about responsibility… like, when mom learned the daily regimen of the fish diet, and how dad became the chosen one to deep clean the tank. (Honestly, becoming more responsible wasn’t that hard!)

But beyond the life lessons of responsibility, Bluey also showed us laughter, love, and loyalty. And even though we also learned about a painful kind of loneliness on the flip side of those L-words, we still believe it is better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all.

So, dad printed out a picture of our beloved Betta, and there we sat around the kitchen table, no longer a family of 5, memorializing Bluey with love letters, endless tears, and sloppy sniffles.

R.I.P. Bluey. Thank you for being the best pet ever. We hope you found the deep, warm, colorful stream that flows beneath the Rainbow Bridge… Swim deep, play with the mermaids, and show off your best cartwheels until we see you again on the other side.