GRIEF Poem: Eve, My Beloved Dog, by Ellen Collins

Absolutely stunning,
and she walks as if she knows it.
She’s got white fur, icy blue eyes,
And a freckled pink nose.
She walks sorta funny,
Because her back left leg is janky.

I trust her with my life,
And in turn she trusts me with hers.
When she yawns, I always
Stick my finger in her mouth.
It bothers her, but she lets me do it.
I like to think she lets me
just because she loves me.

She hates the bath, but loves
When I brush her.
She blows her coat twice a year,
Almost to the exact week every time.

She always knows when I’m upset,
Sometimes before I know,
And she’ll lay right on my legs
Or she’ll shove her nose into my hand.
Just to let me know she’s still here.

She’ll check on me every so often,
Just to make sure I’m still there too.
When I get home from work
She’ll get so excited
she can’t even stand up.

Eve wasn’t supposed to be my dog.
My parents got her when I was 13
As a family pet,
but she never cared about anyone
As much as she cared for me.

Wherever I went, she wanted to be there.
We used to go walk across the soybean field
behind my parents’ house,
And we’d sit for hours near a little creak.
I’d read and she’d sunbathe, or hunt mice.
She’s a husky,
but she doesn’t mind sitting
so long as I’m right there.
Even if she’d rather be
doing something else.

She loves brussel sprouts,
And hates cats.
Especially grey ones.
She’s terrified of water,
But she loves to kayak with me.

She’s my protector.
One time we kayaked on lake Ore-Be-Gone,
And I got out of the kayak
To cliff dive with my dad.
She got so scared when I jumped,
That despite her fear of water
She jumped right in to go get me.

She’s the perfect dog,
And I know everyone says it
But she’s my best friend.
No one will ever compare to her.
She has my soul and my heart,
And she fills both to the brim.

Eve, my beloved dog,
Has a brain tumor at just seven years old, And
though she’s protected me from gophers,
coyotes, and people she don’t like,
I can’t do a single thing to help her now.

So I pet her head, and we watch TV.
And she’ll see I’m upset, and comfort me
Just the way she always has.
She’ll lay on my legs,
and shove her nose into my hand.
Her way of saying she’ll always be there.
And for the next month or two, she will be.