SHADOW DOG

By John Herlihy

Now I am just an old dog,

My trusted tricks next to none.

Shiny head, broken teeth, an old sod,

A little friend in my life’s fabric spun.

We were two old dogs bound together,

Nothing could separate us, tear us apart.

We roamed the back roads in all weather,

Our two bodies always beat as one heart.

In my old age, memory holds little comfort,

Her presence always made the air clear.

At night, those memories stirred discomfort,

Her bright eyes and wagging tail held dear.

When all else failed, she was always there,

Enough to put my hand to rest on her head.

She gave all she had with nothing to spare,

When she fell sick, I immediately felt dread.

Funny, but we don’t expect our pets to get sick;

They run through our lives as a permanent fixture.

The flame of a dog’s life has an everlasting wick;

At least her loyalty and love were a fine mixture.

After a few bad days, she seemed to get better;

She still lay by my side through the long night.

Perhaps I was imagining, but she seemed fitter;

We both fell asleep and disappeared from sight.

When I woke next morning, she was in distress;

The day I knew was coming did finally arrive.

I laid my hand on her head for one final caress;

A day when I wondered whether I would survive.

I will always remember her haunting little scream,

That will stay with me until the end of my days.

Death is never the promise that it would seem;

It comes upon us unexpectedly with its own ways.

And yet and still, her memory will always survive,

A new puppy in my life would never fill her shoes.

Into the future of my days, I will continue to dive,

A shadow dog by my side still barking away the blues.