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Description
R.I.P.

Some time,
In mid-1999
(Just before first grade),
Into our happy home
Came a one-year-old chocolate Labrador –
Hershey was his name.

He was a spunky pup,
Full of spirit and love,
Yet also so full of fear.
Probably the victim of prior abuse,
He flinched at the presence
Of a welcoming hand drawing near,

Even still, he was the sweetest dog
A person could ever love,
Forever loyal –
Despite the many zippers
Removed from winter jackets.
We gave him a warm and friendly home,
Where he grew plump and happy,
But never outgrew his fear of loud noises.

We all loved the way
He would whisper secretes at us,
And how he'd nibble at the clothes on our bodies
When he wanted attention.
He received many playful giggles
At the way he'd flop around in the snow;
But the part I loved most
Was that he was always a friend
To whom I could go.

With a face that could erase
A frown from anyone else's,
And a joy in his heart
That could light up
The darkest room,
He was always the distinction
Of "man's best friend".

But then,
Twelve short years later,
A weakness overtook him
That came with old age.
It was six days past my eighteenth Birthday;
I was officially an adult,
Yet never before could I remember
Crying like such a baby.
When I received the news,
I fell to his side
And held him,
As I wept and wept.

Thirteen long years he had lived;
For me it all seemed too short.
And still to this day,
I remember the warmth
In his large glowing brown eyes,
And the way his stubby tail went
A hundred beats per minute
Each day when I'd return home.

And sometimes,
On those days I'd let my guard down,
I can still feel his presence
When I come home after a long day of school,
Slowly making his way to the top of the stairs
To greet me at the door.

Description
R.I.P.

Some time,
In mid-1999
(Just before first grade),
Into our happy home
Came a one-year-old chocolate Labrador –
Hershey was his name.

He was a spunky pup,
Full of spirit and love,
Yet also so full of fear.
Probably the victim of prior abuse,
He flinched at the presence
Of a welcoming hand drawing near,

Even still, he was the sweetest dog
A person could ever love,
Forever loyal –
Despite the many zippers
Removed from winter jackets.
We gave him a warm and friendly home,
Where he grew plump and happy,
But never outgrew his fear of loud noises.

We all loved the way
He would whisper secretes at us,
And how he'd nibble at the clothes on our bodies
When he wanted attention.
He received many playful giggles
At the way he'd flop around in the snow;
But the part I loved most
Was that he was always a friend
To whom I could go.

With a face that could erase
A frown from anyone else's,
And a joy in his heart
That could light up
The darkest room,
He was always the distinction
Of "man's best friend".

But then,
Twelve short years later,
A weakness overtook him
That came with old age.
It was six days past my eighteenth Birthday;
I was officially an adult,
Yet never before could I remember
Crying like such a baby.
When I received the news,
I fell to his side
And held him,
As I wept and wept.

Thirteen long years he had lived;
For me it all seemed too short.
And still to this day,
I remember the warmth
In his large glowing brown eyes,
And the way his stubby tail went
A hundred beats per minute
Each day when I'd return home.

And sometimes,
On those days I'd let my guard down,
I can still feel his presence
When I come home after a long day of school,
Slowly making his way to the top of the stairs
To greet me at the door.