This photo, as you can see, is dark, out of focus, and poorly framed, but I love and cherish it dearly because it is the last photo of a birthday with two of my dogs who are no longer physically with me. Even though Chloe, who was my most affectionate dog, isn't in the picture, this image transports me back to that moment and reminds me of how she was jumping around me right there. She loved to steal my attention away from the others, and my baby Beethoven, the Golden Retriever, was the most noble being in the world.

For a couple of years now, I've been in the habit of taking pre-birthday photos with my four-legged babies, and on this occasion, I took the opportunity to take one with my little nephew, which wasn't easy at all, because two of them wanted to be on top of my nephew, while the smallest one wanted to be with me and guard me. My sister tried to take a good photo of us, but we were moving around a lot, and it's difficult to get a good shot with dogs, after all.

But who would have believed that those would be the last photos with two of them? I never imagined it. Their deaths were so sudden and so close together that I was surprised at how one's life can change in a second, leaving only these photos to at least remember those beautiful moments. That's why I don't care if it's not a very professional shot, or if the lighting isn't perfect. What matters is that it keeps my memories of them intact, of how restless they were, how attached they were to us, and, best of all, that my nephew, even though he didn't know them for very long, still keeps them present and remembers them. Ultimately, they may leave a great void, but they also leave you with a great love.