Category: Poetry

Poppy, Be in Peace

A tragic loss of a wonderful dog.

Little Poppy

On Friday afternoon, Jeannie and I were out on our usual walk along a trail through the Granite Dells.  This is spectacular scenery with magnificent granite boulders, escarpments and mountains all around.  The trail that we use is a Payson Area Trails System/United States Forestry Service designated walk.

As it happens it’s just over a mile from where we live and it has been a regular place to walk Pharaoh’s ‘pack’ most days.

Pharaoh’s little group of dogs includes Dhalia, Hazle and Poppy.  Poppy is a small terrier/poodle mix and like Dhalia and Hazle is a rescue dog.  Indeed Jean rescued Poppy many years ago from a Mexican rubble site practically hairless and surviving, just, off food scraps she could beg, steal or find.  Poppy, at 15 lbs, was also the closest buddy of Pharaoh, at 90 lbs!  Pharaoh is our German Shepherd dog whose face is the subject of the home page of this Blog.

We walk all four of them most days along the trail described above; Friday was no exception.  The only difference was that when we were almost back to the car we stopped and chatted to a neighbour, Bud, who was in his truck with a couple of his dogs.

Bud then drove off and we immediately noticed Poppy wasn’t with us.

One minute she was with us, the next Poppy had simply disappeared!

And that really is it.  I could go on about the hours spent going over and over the area, re-walking the trail, staying there until nightfall on Friday, going back at 06.30 am on Saturday morning, then again twice more on Saturday and again on Sunday with an inch of snow on the ground and with heavy sleet pelting down.  Not a sign, not a whimper, not a clue.

Thus she remains lost in weather that for the last 48 hours has been brutal; it is unrealistic to imagine that she survived despite us praying for a miracle.  Jeannie is devastated; I the same.  What hurts so much is not knowing what happened.

So dear little Poppy we hope you are at peace and we thank you for the great love you have given Jean and then later on me and Pharaoh.

“There is one best place to bury a dog.
“If you bury him in this spot, he will
come to you when you call – come to you
over the grim, dim frontier of death,
and down the well-remembered path,
and to your side again.

“And though you call a dozen living
dogs to heel, they shall not growl at
him, nor resent his coming,
for he belongs there.

“People may scoff at you, who see
no lightest blade of grass bent by his
footfall, who hear no whimper, people
who may never really have had a dog.
Smile at them, for you shall know
something that is hidden from them,
and which is well worth the knowing.

“The one best place to bury a good
dog is in the heart of his master.”

Ben Hur Lampman —
from the Portland Oregonian Sept. 11, 1925

Poppy is beautifully placed in the heart of Jeannie, me and all her doggie friends.

Earth, a poem

A lovely comment and a beautiful poem.

On the 28th January, Learning from Dogs posted the second of two articles about Planet Earth.  The first one was here and the second here.  That second piece attracted a lovely comment from Sue of SueDreamwalker.  What follows from this point is all Sue’s work.

A very Good Post Paul.

I thought I might share a Poem of mine about Earth I was inspired to write this in 1995, long before we got the weather we are experiencing today… Appologies for its length..

I agree we need to respect… for we are along longs ways from Space hopping..

Earth


Earth gave her body; she gave it us to share
Her breath once sweet now pollutes the air
Her waterways of veins once were crystal clear
Now they hold our garbage lifeless pools and mires

Earth gave her body; she gave it us to share
She gave us animals for pleasure and yes for food
Not to be hunted to extinction penned up and abused
She gave us her Forests for shelter and for fuel
Not for mass developments using greed for cutting tools

Earth gave us her body; she gave it us to share
The soil she gave for harvest of plants that now are rare
For medicine and minerals, silver bronze and gold
Her treasure chests of beauty, we’ve pillaged raped and sold

Earth gave us her body; she gave it us to share
Now her tears are falling, can’t you see her pain?
The bombs that we are testing, fall out, Floods- the Rain.
Wars between each Nation, like stabbings in her back
Earthquakes——- Thunder, Lightning,
She’s Crying with each Crack..

“Enough” she cries “Enough”, as Planet Earth disrupts
Her breaking heart that Bleeds, Volcanoes then Erupts
Her breath now rages Anger, Tornadoes swirl revenge
Beware the Human Race, Planet Earth could still avenge

Earth gave her body she gave it us to share
The beauty is all around us, forever standing there
Let’s not take her for granted, for some day she will rebel
Treat her with some kindness, our fellow man as well.

Earth gave her body, she gives us Life
Let’s stop all our hating, stop the greed and strife
Earth gave us a garden, she gives us love
Love is the only answer, we are told so from above

Earth gave her body, Give her your respect
For she might rebel, turn her back sooner than you’d expect
So help her through her Torment, Heal her wounded sores,
We can start by healing each other around her windy shores
Love her and those upon her, take away her tears,
Her Promise in return,
Rebirth the “ Golden Years!”

By Dreamwalker..

Beautiful words!

Postscript on dear Corrie

Even in death, there is goodness.

Learning from Dogs has been running since July 15th, 2009. Between all of the authors and contributors there have been 813 Posts presented.  None has had more comments than the Post published on the 12th January, 2010 about the loss of our dear Mexican rescue dog, Corrie.  So for all our sakes, I just wanted to highlight the love that Corrie’s death has mirrored by reproducing the comments added to that article.

 

Corrie in Winter snow - January 2nd 2011

 

From Rosemarie and Joe (see the poem later on).

We are so sorry to hear of your loss of beloved Corrie. This is a beautiful picture of Jeannie with her girl! Our thoughts are with you both!

From Dogkisses.

Corrie… so beautiful. I’m very sorry for your loss. Bless your hearts with peace.

From Gloria and Barry.

Sorry you lost your darling dog – today has been full of tears for us Australians so much lost in so short a time can only be thankful our family is all safe – our thoughts are with you.

From Sue Dreamwalker.

I know only too well the grief of losing such a beloved friend of our most loyal of animal kingdoms.. My heartfelt thoughts are with you both. Her soul goes on, and she will be forever faithfuland stay close to those who gave her back the unconditional love she gave you.

From Becky Bains.

Our love and thoughts go out you guys. When we lost Susie we were heartbroken. One of our friends posted this to us. I hope it brings some comfort. Love to you. xx

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together….

From Dogkisses.

Dear Paul,
I just wanted to say my girl Free is there, running in the meadows and playing with her cousin.
I saw her many times after she left this earth. She was happy in my very clear visions until one day when I was so sad. I was crying over missing her. I saw her that day in my living room. Her head was leaning to one side, as if to say she didn’t understand, and I heard her spirit questioning me. I didn’t hear words out loud, but I heard her message –”I thought you promised you would be okay.”
That day, I met my girl Ruthie. I’ve never seen Free again, not so clearly, not like I did in those weeks before I found Ruthie. I know it sounds off the wall, and it is, but it sure happened.
Sometimes, I still see a picture of Free in my mind. She is always smiling and happy. I promised her I would remember our good times and as hard as I imagined that would be, every time I think of her, I nearly laugh, just like I am as I write about her.
She continues to give, even though she had to cross that bridge.

Peace to you and your family.

A poem sent in the mail to us from Rosemarie and Joe.

When God had made the earth and the sky,

The flowers and the trees,

He then made all the animals

And all the birds and bees.

And when His work was finished,

Not one was quite the same.

He said, “I’ll walk this Earth of mine,

And give each one a name”,

And so He travelled land and sea,

And everywhere He went,

A little creature followed Him,

Until its strength was spent.

When all were named upon the earth,

And in the sky and sea,

The little creature said, “Dear Lord,

There’s not one left for me.”

The Father smiled and softly said,

“I’ve left you to the end,

I’ve turned my own name back to front,

And called you Dog my friend.” Author unknown.

That’s all for today, but tomorrow I want to add a further thought about the power of love that has come out of Corrie’s sad but meaningful death.

Corrie R.I.P.

The painful loss of a beautiful dog.

This is not the time to engage in deep philosophical thoughts about death, dogs and what we can learn from them.  I shall leave that for later.

Just to hold dear in our minds what dogs offer humanity.  Dear friends, Rosemarie and Joe, who lunched with us yesterday gave us the following poem and it seems a very apt way to send out prayers into the universe.

Corrie, just 10 days ago.

With eye upraised his masters look to scan,

The joy, the solace and the aid of man.

The rich man’s guardian and the poor man’s friend,

The only creature faithful to the end. George Crabbe

Corrie died at 01:30 this morning with Jean and me holding her tight in our arms and our prayers.  She was a good dog.  Her loving and faithful soul will return.

Dear Corrie – you are now at peace for evermore.

Dolphin’s inspire!

And bring good people together.

On the 23rd October, I wrote a piece on Learning from Dogs about the innocence of dolphins and how some humans (not the correct term but it will do for now) sully the very soul of mankind by murdering these beautiful aquatic creatures.

Hopefully, the piece touched a folk with goodness in their hearts. Indeed, one such good person posted a lovely poem as a comment.  That person was Sue of the Blogsite Dreamwalker’s Sanctuary.  The poem deserved being made a post on here and so it’s an honour to do just that.

 

A Sanctuary for Inspirational Thoughts of Light, Love and Peace

 

Our Song, by Sue Dreamwalker
We are the giants that swim beneath the waves
Will you help our babies save?
Why do you Hunt us, why do you Kill?
Do you not realise what part we do play.
Singing our songs each and every day.
Vibration is what your world is held in
We balance your ocean along with Dolphin.
Now once again we are chased from the deep
Your awareness of us is what we do seek.
So painful a death as we face the harpoon.
Our calves are left orphaned to swim alone.
Our carcass is butchered, how long can we survive?
Our only escape is dive, dive, dive.
But connected to you we breathe the same air
Please listen to our despair.
For Our Song in lament we plead with you all.
For soon no longer will you hear our call.

Thanks Sue.

And do tune in next Monday (1st November) – another lovely story about dolphins.

By Paul Handover

The True Test

An interesting poem by Peter Kahn

During my sorting out of old belongings stored at my mother’s house in London, I came across this.

The True Test

I’m a teacher, not a preacher

but I will preach a little to teach a little

won’t extol the power of God, but the power of words.

I’ll attempt to amplify and magnify the God-given talent

that I suspect some of you may neglect or under-utilize

because its value has been minimized

in the movement to standardize and over-analyze

how well we perform on tests.

–

I intend to underscore how you’re blessed

academically

beyond those test

scores

that supposedly solely

attest to the level

of your intellect

but in effect

tell you what you can’t do.

–

I’m not a preacher, but I’ll testify that

I suspect these tests

neglect to detect

creativity, “can-do-it-y”

the fluidity of your ingenuity

the things that reflect true potential

hardly inconsequential

that are immeasurable

un-testable

by standard means

You know what this means

It’s about bringing what you’ve got to the table

to enable them

to envision you

as a mover and a shaker

who will take him or her

by the heart and start

a new vision for everyone to see

unimpaired by the SAT and GCSE

You see, we’re about to utilize poetry

to show ’em what you got

is not just what they think they see.

–

Are you with me?

are you ready to unleash your abilities?

are you ready to impress?

like the Rock’s biceps?

like Janet Jackson’s dance steps?

like the poetic lyrics of Mos Def?

and the Haitian syncopations of Wyclef?

–

Are you willing to try your absolute best?

Now that’s the TRUE test.

Hachikō inspires poetry as well

A lovely postscript from Daniela Caride.

I make no apology for this being the third day on the theme of the wonderful, loyal Akita dog, Hachikō.  On the 31st I wrote about the American film that in modern style echoed the beautiful, original Japanese film of over 80 years ago.

Anyway, Daniela Caride, of the blog The Daily Tail, added a lovely comment to that first post and it deserved being published in full.  Here it is:

I sobbed for two hours straight watching “Hachi, a dog’s tale” (I still have a headache) — a movie inspired by the real story of Hachiko, an Akita dog who achieved international fame for his loyalty. The dog waited for his deceased owner for nine years at the train station.

I realized that Hachi became a symbol of loyalty not because he was better than any other dog. Dogs are exceptionally loyal if treated with love and respect. But nobody offered Hachi a loving home during the long years he waited for Professor Ueno. It broke my heart. So I wrote the poem below.

Hachiko the dog

I humbly ask you to send this post to every person you know who may be able to find a home to a pet in need. Together we may be able to ease the pain of homeless animals like Hachi, who ask for so little and give back so much.

Hachi waits

By Daniela Caride

Hachi waits at the train station
The dog waits for nine minutes
It’s after five
It’s time
And the professor doesn’t arrive

Hachi waits for nine hours
Nine days
The professor is late
But the dog doesn’t mind
At the train station he stays

Hachi waits for nine months
Nine years straight
He’s convinced the professor is really late
But the dog doesn’t mind
At the train station he stays

Tired of old age, not tired of his long wait
Hachi finally closes his eyes
And finds his friend
In his deepest dreams inside
At the end

But Hachi still waits
Even after he died

He waits on the streets of every town
At all the neighborhood pounds
Under the skin of every dog around
For someone to rescue him

To give him
A name
Water
Food
And a home
Where love abounds

Daniela and Lola

Well done, Daniela. That is beautiful.

By Paul Handover