Ode to a dog

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The giver of love, complete and undying -
this faithful companion, loyal and true-
What thoughts are you having as you lie here with me?
What dreams of the past or anew?
With complete understanding in simple  accord,
between us no words do we need,
That look in your eyes says our  souls are united,
together our spirits are freed.
For your kind of wisdom  I secretly yearn -
what makes you so constant since time
began?
I'd  gladly be humble, your knowledge to learn,
but I know not the answer - I am  but a man.

Boy Philosopher

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If the leaders of the world could be as totally unconcerned as  we
With thoughts of wars and disharmony -
What peace and love there'd  always be
-
Just you and me, dog.
How glorious
never to know the din of  guns
and cannons, of battles to win -
Only peace on
earth and goodwill to men
  -
Just like you and me, dog.
If fishing was
their daily chore and 
tranquillity reigned for evermore -
If only they
thought that war was a
BORE  -
Just like you and me, dog.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Happiness is a sable dog with happy bark resounding,
To let
  me know his
joy in life begins with love abounding.
Happiness is his gentle
  eyes
gazing into mine -
No demands he makes, just watching me, our spirits
 
intertwine.
Happiness is the knowledge of the legacy to his breed,
When I

  can no longer have him - when his spirit has been freed.
Happiness is

knowing  that we'll meet again some day,
And then we'll know  that
happiness
is with  us both to stay.

The Dogs Home

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I pass the place going to and from work,
each day of the week I go by.
The sounds from within always make my heart ache
- there's nothing so sad as their cry.

The cry of the lost, the lonely and sick - the ones who will never be claimed.
The people who left them to fend for themselves,
I wonder - are they ever ashamed?

Sometimes I see people who've been there in hope of finding their long-lost pet,
But when they've inspected the "catch" for the day
they leave with their eyes looking wet.

Others, of course, will have better luck and "Spotty" or "Patch" will go home,
And then happy people will walk out those doors, vowing not to let their dogs roam.
But sometimes I feel that the fault can be found with the owner who lets his pet go,
To wander at large wherever he will - how could a dog possibly know?
The people in charge of these places, I'm sure, don't enjoy the jobs that they do,
But someone must care for these wandering pets - some owners are careless, it's
  true.
So
next time you buy your young child a pup, teach him to care for it
 
well.
Not only to feed it and love it, you know, but the dangers of roaming

  as well.
And if you neglect to look after your dog and your ownership
duties
  you shirk,
Perhaps you might understand best what I mean if you
walk with me
  to and from work.









THE SHAPE OF

 
FRIENDSHIP
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Friends come in all different shapes and sizes,
Who cares
  just how they
appear?
One doesn't question the why and the where,
As long
  as they
always stay near.
A fellow's worth is not judged by his looks
Nor
 
how much money he'll own,
But more likely by his genuine care
And the

  amount of concern which is shown.
No matter how independent we are,.
Nor

  how much we might face alone,
The day will come when we need someone's

  help
And a friend we can call our own.
Don't search for true
friends, for
  they'll find you,
Even though you try hard to hide,
And
even if you
should  try to avoid them,
They'll find you and stay by your
side.
In
times of  stress I soon ask myself
Who my true friends
really are
And I'm
forced to  admit, though with some regret,
There
are very few who really
care.
So  when numbering my friends, the virtues
I count
Are loyalty,
sincerity and  love -
Regardless of age, shape,
wealth or size,
I give
thanks to Heaven  above.
And the friend that I
treasure most dearly of
all
Is quiet and shy  and quite small.
Her
name is "Kim" and she sleeps by
my feet -
She's the  dearest and best of
them all.









ABANDONED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Lost and
lonely, sad and cold,
They don't want me now that
  I'm old.
They used
to love me when I was young -
A cuddly puppy - my
  praises were
sung.
But now that my eyes have grown dim with time
They
seem  to
think that growing old is a crime.
So they left me here without a
 
glance,
By the side of the road - to take a chance
That someone will come

  and take pity on me,
But it's been many nights and I'm oh! so
lonely.
I
  miss my warm bed and my regular meal -
It just doesn't
seem that this can be
  real.
Who will love me and give me a home
-
One from which I never would
  roam?
I promise to love you and sit
by your feet,
And with the years I
  have left my old heart will
beat
With kindness, affection and loyalty,
  too.
I'll be just the
perfect old dog for you.