Thank you to Horst Hoefinger from Dogster for the Love of Dog Blog for this dog poem. I used to think I was a bit "off" because I love animals very hard and deep, but reading this poem says so much about how I feel. My dogs have profoundly changed my life. I'm not afraid anymore to say how much my dogs means to me. I owe them so much because I would not be who I am today without them. My dogs are my JOY and I live joyfully when I apply what I learn from them to my everyday life. They are such wise teachers. I actually feel sorry for people who don't understand the connection humans, such as myself, have with dogs. I feel they are missing out on so much.
Today my husband and I are starting a new tradition for Christmas and going to a movie this afternoon. Could it be more fitting that the movie is about dogs and is "Marley and Me?" I have cried everytime I see the movie trailer… I can only imagine the flood of emotions I will feel watching the whole movie! But they are all good feelings, tough feelings, the feelings of life. I just wish the theatre would allow dogs cause I have a feeling I will want to be hugging my dogs during the entire movie!!
But before I ramble on, here is the poem:
Just a Dog
From time to time, people tell me, “lighten up, it’s just a dog,” or, “that’s a lot of money for just a dog.” They don’t understand the distance traveled, the time spent, or the costs involved for “just a dog.”
Some of my proudest moments have come about with “just a dog.” Many hours have passed and my only company was “just a dog,” but I did not once feel slighted.
Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by “just a dog,” and in those days of darkness, the gentle touch of “just a dog” gave me comfort and reason to overcome the day.
If you, too, think it’s “just a dog,” then you will probably understand phases like “just a friend,” “just a sunrise,” or “just a promise.” “Just a dog” brings into my life the very essence of friendship, trust, and pure unbridled joy. “Just a dog” brings out the compassion and patience that make me a better person.
Because of “just a dog” I will rise early, take long walks and look longingly to the future. So for me and folks like me, it’s not “just a dog” but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future, the fond memories of the past, and the pure joy of the moment.
“Just a dog” brings out what’s good in me and diverts my thoughts away from myself and the worries of the day.
I hope that someday they can understand that it’s not “just a dog” but the thing that gives me humanity and keeps me from being “just a human.”
So the next time you hear the phrase “just a dog.” just smile, because they “just don’t understand.”
Authored by Richard A. Biby
MERRY CHRISTMAS!