A forever friend

(Gurgles of laughter, patter of small feet,
chuckles in the corners of bright rooms
A crashed vase, a howl, sniffles,
tears wiped out and wounds seen
A resumption of play,
my world chaos-ridden,
every corner a mischief looms
Tired, subdued, finally
the cherubs sleep
and my world
is uncomfortably serene.")1


Andrea giggles as she runs from one end of the house to the other. The new addition to the family chases her with the intention of getting her on the ground for a doggie lick. Andrea waits behind the big chair for her new partner to tear around the corner and she is off for the safety of the kitchen table. As she runs through the living room Rufus collides with her and Andrea falls to the floor hitting the end table on her way down. Rufus stands over her as she begins to cry. In a brief moment of silence they hear the tick tock of a vase rocking back and forth on the edge of the table. In its final moments it teeters on the edge and tips off. Crash! Rufus takes the full brunt of the vase on his head and yelps in fright. The pieces fall all around Andrea but she is not harmed. Rufus protected her. He slowly comes around the corner as Andrea’s mom helps her child out of the mess. Mom is not mad and Andrea’s tears dry up. Rufus comes out head down, tail wagging. He gets a rub on the head and a big hug. Andrea goes up to her room to play while Mom cleans up the broken vase pieces. As she cleans she realizes that she no longer hears the pitter patter of any feet. Not two legged or four. She creeps up the stairs listening. She peeks into Andrea’s room and the new best friends are fast asleep in a pile on the bed. She watches and smiles.2