During winter’s wetter and cooler days, photo sorting seems a constructive way to idle away a few hours. One such day, I came across an image of an old mate who wasn’t very photogenic. He loathed having his photo taken. Now you may ask how a dog can dislike a camera. Well, one quirky dog did and here is a wee poem in honour of him.
The dog
Introduced by our mate Don
Don and dog were mates.
You see, one rescued the other
Dog was born on the streets of Kawerau
A rescue dog
Forever grateful was he.
On a sunny day way back when
Don came to visit with his mate dog
He needed a home we were told
Dog was our dog before Don said goodbye
Then dog became Blue.
Who never wandered past you
Without displaying a wagging tail
A gentle touch of his wet nose
Acknowledging you as a mate
Never with a growly bark was Blue to greet.
Good mates with us all
Don and Blue
Chatter over coffee
Blue a bone
Adventures around the farm
Was had by us all.
Until one day
They left this world, and us
Don and Blue.
During the same week
Both surrounded by love.
We were reassured; we knew
That both would be
Happily together in good company
Because that’s what mates do.
A bit more background about this poem
I hope you enjoyed this poem; it isn’t meant to be a sad one more of recognition of our two forever good mates, one who had an incurable skin disorder that was Blue and his mate, Don, who, in 2006, finally was at peace after a battle with prostate cancer.
In Aotearoa/New Zealand, September goes Blue for Prostrate Cancer awareness. So in honour of Don, you boys, please get that bit of your autonomy seen too.
Life at No. 22 
What a lovely inspiring poem, Suzanne, and not at all sentimental. I’m sure they both deserved your love.
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It was nice to see the photo of the dog named Blue. He was a lovely boy and I’ll always remember how he & Tia loved racing up & down the boundary;
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Thanks Chris and it made us smile at their antics. Blue was certainly a character and so was Tia 🙂
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Very nice way to remember the two mates. I love hearing rescue stories!
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Thanks, Eilene for your welcome comment. More rescues the better and hopefully less chance of there being more of designer dog breeders in our world.
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A dog who disliked the camera… oh, I smiled at that one.
Such a lovely story poetically told.
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Thanks very much, Sue. He was our only four-legged friend to dislike his photo being taken. A bit of character was Blue 🙂
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Lovely poem, Suzanne. Two mates who left this world together, reconnecting in the next.
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Thanks very much, Janis. Apologies for the late reply as I seemed to have forgotten a few. Old age 😉
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It seems to be the time for such memories, Suzanne. You tell Don and Blue’s story with simplicity and fondness to match their two beautiful souls.
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Thanks very much, Tracy.
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That’s lovely.
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Cheers George, and pleased you enjoyed it.
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A fine tribute to both, Suzanne
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Thanks very much, Derrick and writing made me smile thinking about the antics Blue used to get up to around the orchard.
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A lovely tribute Suzanne. Jack is contemplating that fate at the moment, hopefully it can be avoided.
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Thanks very much, Pauline. Oh, all the very best regarding Jack’s health. Never easy is it dealing with health concerns.
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I know quite a few victims, Suzanne, but mostly success stories, thank God! Love your poem. Happy together!
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Thanks very much, Jo and here is too many more success stories as we can’t get enough of those can we! Don helped out on a voluntary basis at the SPCA shelter hence how we adopted Blue on such short notice. He was to be put down if we hadn’t and in the end he brought plenty of joy into our lives.
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🤗💗
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Lovely tribute to your fur friend.
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Thanks very much, Ju-Lyn.
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