Where are the arms
that used to hold me
and feed
me
and comfort
me?
My home,
My shelter,
My security
Gone.
Help Me. I'm afraid.
I move frantically
searching
for the path to home
Without food or water
The hunger
consumes me
and fatigue
overtakes me.
Help Me.
Exhausted from a hopeless search
I lay down
To rest--alone
and find comfort in slumber.
The day's heat
scorches
my skin,
The night's cold
chills my
core.
My labored breathing eases.
My heart rate slows.
I drift off to an endless sleep.
Help...
A Rainbow appears in the sky
to guide
me home
to the Rainbow
Bridge.
 |
I was overcome by grief and guilt--the
'if onlies.' If only I had the time to stop and pick him up. If only I
knew where to take a lost animal. If only animal control had found him
and taken him to be adopted. If only his owner's had found him, or the
highway patrol.
I consoled myself by writing
a poem, several days later, and created a "good ending," of sorts.
Later that day, I was in a craft store when a young child looked around and realized he was lost. Frantically, he was looking around, trying to figure out what to do. At that point his mother appeared...he was found. Seeing this interaction and a better outcome, helped--a bit.
Several weeks later on a scorching day, I saw cars slowing down on the freeway. The reason--a dog standing in the center divide looking across to the other side, trying to decide whether or not to pass. By the time I realized what was going on I had passed by; it was too late to do much than slow down and say another silent prayer, "Help guide this one home."
I felt helpless and unable to know what, if anything I could have done differently in both of these situations. All I could do is say a silent prayer.
These lost dogs helped me to put into perspective how had lost our family pets. Although I was saddened to loose a favorite pet during medical school, especially since he passed unexpectedly, I realized that he was with people who loved him and did not die alone.