I saw this poem in a book I was recently reading and I immediately connected with it. Cole is absolutely fascinated with Tucker and all he does, hugging Tucker around his neck, laying on Tucker like a pillow, crawling over Tucker who lays there so patiently, throwing the ball (all but a few inches) for Tucker, picking up Tucker's toys and handing them gently to him (and Tucker ever so gently accepting them); listening to Cole's giggle as Tucker races around after coming in from the cold rubbing his face on the throw rug to get rid of the slobber icicles. They are such buddies and I look forward to watching their relationship grow. So the lines below provided me with a bit of melancholy as I fast forwarded to years from now.
It's tough on a dog when his boy grows up, when he no longer romps and frolics like a pup
It's tough on a dog when his boy grows older, when they no longer cuddle on the bed when it's cold
It's tough on a dog when a boy gets tall, when he's off with the boys playing soccer and baseball
They no longer paddle through the mud in the bog, hoping to find a stray turtle or frog
They no longer run through the grass up to their knees or roll in the piles of fresh fallen leaves
It's tough on a dog when a boy has work to do, when he forgets how to play like he used too
It's tough on a dog when instead of the woods or the field or the pond his boy becomes a man and that boy is now gone
Jean W. Sawtell
No comments:
Post a Comment