Saturday, December 25, 2010

Tribute to Lady

Lady ( July 4th 1997 - December 19th 2010)

(Lady drawing by Ray Swaney)

A pensive black doggy named Lady

Lay quietly where it was shady.

A bevy of quail

Marched onto her trail

So she rapidly joined their paradey.






Lady As God 2007

My dog Lady otherwise engaged
will not come to me when I pray to her
“Here girl, good girl” busy god she
with no time to deign to descend
to respond to this mere god-made-man,
more likely, certain of my deity,
no mere agnostic she, Lady turns
away from me her personal god
never having conceived
hell among her many
much less virulent creations.

Without a Resurrection


Our black dog Lady
generally collapses to rest.
Trembling haunches
no longer ease her descent.
And likewise it would take muscles
dying within her, with her,
to enable our unabled black dog
to rise mightily once again
even one last time.



















Tale of the Tail

Did our black dog miss her tail?
She arrived without one.

I suppose it can truly be termed a “rescue.”
when you take in a dog without a tail.

What sort of tale lies behind her missing tail?
This poetic autopsy of my dog Lady’s tail:

What we know is that Lady
the offspring of a bizaare coupling

big black boisterous male lab and
coy little curly blonde cocker spaniel bitch

began in Clearlake where she
emerged confused on the Fourth of July.

Her psychic nine month gestation
prior to her finding her way to us

began with the pup picked from a box
before the Safeway store in Clearlake.

With such odd breeding, this puppy
named Cheyenne like something wild,

like some Nevada desert whore
with a prairie personality,

proved to be at battle within herself,
skittish as the worst-bred cocker,

convivial as a back-slapping lab,
this two-in-one toddler tugged-at-war within herself.

Scared love given
She must have been beaten

We see it when she cowers
We know of her former mistress

Mistress Oblivious who told us,
“Cheyenne (Oh how that name grates)

“Cheyenne was so good!
She used to pull my wheelchair.”

(something like the Grinch’s
scrawny little mutt without the antlers)

We know she rode long distances
over the mountain in a truck.

We know for show they later
bought two Maltese pups

that bit my black dog’s drooping ears
whenever she’d attempt to eat.

Then, like Cinderella, she was left
outside always alone

while her wicked little stepsisters
ate and played within –

--those tiny bitches! –
and then the tail was taken

by an overzealous vet
who tried to do a cocker bob

but effected a fully final amputation;
how embarassing when other dogs would

check her out, not to mention the phantom
pain she felt for her missing extremity.

The fortuitous fortune that set her free –
-- selfish folly—“too much trouble”

She found her way to us
through a fateful friend

She was wearing a black bow with
big white polka dots

We loved her instantly
She was fully a “Lady”

home from the camps
laden with baggage.









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13 comments:

Allen Roland said...

Ed, those who we love deeply become part of us forever. Lady will always live in your heart like all of those I have loved deeply.

Holiday blessings,

Allen

Issa's Untidy Hut said...

Ed, a lovely tribute all around. May you take great solace in all these wonder full memories. Don

Eddie Rosenthal said...

Thanks ed,
i will be with you shortly. we have two dogs that are 15 or more years of age,
one is deaf, one has cushings disease. i do not look forward to it.
my very deepest sympathy, i am in tears.
eddie

Gayle Swift said...

Ed, your words give tribute to your beautiful Lady. I shall miss the love she so easily shared when I would visit. In the beginning and to the end, she was a Lady. Your friend, Gayle

Toni Partington said...

I'm sending a piece of my heart to lean on as you grieve the loss of a dear friend. There is no way to explain these emotions to others who've never enjoyed this kind of unconditional love. I sense that Lady left a hole as big as the ocean in your loving home. Your tears for her can only begin to
fill it.

with love and respect,
toni

Philip Hacket said...

Thank you Ed. Sorry. My golden retriever "Jack" died at 15. Philip

Nancy Long said...

I'm so sorry, Ed. I will send lots of light and comfort to you. How sad...Nancy Long

Larry C. said...

I loved your "Tale of the Tail" and the lovely drawing by Ray Swaney.
Lady had such a sweet, lovely face.

You and Joyce know what big "animal" people our family is... I am reminded of our Rabbi who said to me after he got his beloved dog, Sarah, about 10 years ago: "I finally get the whole thing with animals. I never really understood before. But I know now!"
He still has her, and about 18 months ago got Emmy, a beautiful German Shepherd.
Lady will live on in our memories...

Andrew Mayer said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Kathleen said...

I looked at your Lady Tribute blog. It's great. It was sweet to see the picture of her on your tummy when she was so young and spry. What a cutie!

Batja said...

Dear Ed,

I am so sorry to hear of the loss of Lady. It is no trivial thing to lose a dog. Here is something (more on the site) to commiserate with you on the wonder that is Dog.
FOR LADY: A MEMORIAL OF SORTS:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-0WVfj76bo

Blessings for the New Year,
Batja Cates

Andrew Mayer said...

Hi Ed--

Just loved your poems to your dog... I wanted to tell you that I think it's rare for poets to do that well. Billy Collins did an excellent poem(s) to his dog, Christopher Marlowe famously to his cat. I thought most of Mary Oliver's poems to her dog didn't succeed, but she does write very well about other animals. So I wanted to compliment you on the beautiful poems, and express my sadness and sympathy for your loss of your beloved Lady.

--Andrew

Pamela Kreamer said...

Finally, I clicked the wretched "Next Blog" button and found an oasis of real introspection without a hint of a pregnant woman, a baby, a religious quotes etc. - Hell, I don't care if people blog about being a pregnant, religious woman, living in Utah- There has to be millions of them... Seriously, I've been a pregnant woman but didn't feel the need to share each twitch or muscle spasm with the bloggosphere --- (It wasn't around the last time I was pregnant but I'd like to think I would not have joined the stampede to blog about the experience)

Anyway Ed, Your blog is well written, funny and you don't take yourself too seriously... too much of that too these days.

BTW, I am guilty of talking about my 2 kids on my blog but it is not the center of my little corner of the blogging universe. Anyway, I enjoyed the trip through your blog. Keep posting.

Cheers,
Pam K
http://2011pictureaday.blogspot.com/