Tuesday 30 December 2008

classic poems about dogs

Tonight a good friend gave me a small book of old poems and pictures about dogs. It's called 'A Classic Illustrated Treasury; Dogs'. The illustrations and poems date from the 1890s to the 1950s.

I think my favorite would have to be the one by Rudyard Kipling
When the Man waked up he said,
"What is the Wild Dog doing here?"
And the Woman said,
"His name is not Wild Dog any more,
but the First Friend,
because he will be our friend
for always and always and always."

I thought that was a pretty good summary of a hundred thousand years of history - or fifteen thousand, depending on which archaeological study you believe.

And...I just noticed it is Rudyard Kipling's birthday today!

8 comments:

Slavenka said...

In the morning the bitch whelped
Seven reddish-brown puppies,
In the rye barn where a row
Of bast mats gleamed like gold.

Licking their pelts smooth,
And underneath her, the snow
Melted out in the heat.

But at dusk, when the hens
Were roosting on the perch,
There came the grim-faced master
Who stuffed the pups in a sack.

The bitch bounded alongside him,
Over the snow-deep fields,
And the icy surface of the water
Shuddered a long, long while.

And when at last she struggled home,
Licking the sweat from her sides,
To her the moon above the house
Seemed like one of the pups.

Whimpering loudly she gazed up
Limpidly into the dark,
While over the hill, the slender moon
Slid into the fields beyond.

And softly, as when someone,
Jesting, throws her a stone,
Her tears, like golden stars,
Trickled down into the snow.
by Sergej Jesenin my favorite poem

Misadventures of Widowhood said...

First Friend, what a good title for our furry little companions.

Levi's mom

parlance said...

Slavenka, I cried!

When I was a child, for some years we had a dog that my father told me my brother had found near the river. It is only recently, forty years later, that my brother told me he rescued the pup IN the river - it had a stone tied to it!

parlance said...

Levi's Mom, I see it as not only the first friend that humans made, but also First Amongst Friends.

Amber-Mae said...

I like the poem alot. It's nice & HAP HAP NEW YEAR!

Having a pawty hangover,
Solid Gold Dancer

parlance said...

Amber-Mae, happy new year to you also! (I loved the video clip of you and your new bumble ball.)

Johann The Dog said...

That's precious, oddly never have read that, or at least don't remember in my old age (Mum speaking :) Love it!

Happy New Year!

Woofs, Johann

parlance said...

Johann, tell your mum thanks for the comments on the other posts, and Happy New Year to all of your household!