I won’t walk with Cosmo on the evening of Nov.5 we will go out during the day time tomorrow, so tonight’s walk is the day before fireworks night.
We did see a few fireworks, but I think Cosmo has mellowed over the years and no longer barks at the occasional rocket while we are out. But I know tomorrow with prolonged outbursts of fireworks and loud whooshes and bangs will be more than he can cope with, and there is a fitful evening ahead of us.
This evening it has stopped raining and I see the guy with the muzzled Lab, only it’s not muzzled and I remark on this.
He replies, ‘she’s going through a good spell……………… it won’t last’.
What he means is that the dog eats absolutely anything it can find, horse manure and worse. So a muzzle on what is actually a nice dog. We talk about Arsenal’s match against Anderlecht and exchange views on tactics in the final third Walcott’s return, and radio commentary rather than TV!
We say goodnight and I realise I have an old man, rather taller than me asking me about my dog? It’s the usual Doodle conversation, and he goes on to say his dog is 13 years old. Brought home from the Dogs Trust by his wife saying the dog was 4 years old then. On the brink of death from neglect, not interested in anything, week and listless, glazed over hardly able to stand and not interested even by dog food. He told me he dribbled chicken fat on its nose and eventually the dog began to lick it off. This was the start of a seven week hand feeding programme. The dog is now thirteen and they are very attached, and he was worried that their time together was not long now. How would he feel on the other side of the dogs death?
He said, ‘I bet your dog is as loyal and trusting as mine, and would follow you to into the underworld of hells fire’.
I said, ‘Indeed he would, and if never came out he’d still be waiting for me outside’.
‘Strange how powerful the link’, he said, ‘Mankind does terrible terrible things and the betrayal and misuse of that trust is one of the worst. Training dogs as bodyguards and living weapons is a shocker and the owners should be put down not the dogs’.
I had to agree with him and said goodnight.
Cosmo by now had found a family on the sea front lighting Chinese Lanterns. A grandmother in a wheel chair covered by a blanket, a mother with three children. I could see that they were agitated that they were not going to float away. I did say to them (as I explained that Cosmo was mine) that it took a long time for the small flame to heat the air inside the paper bag, but eventually it would lift away. The mother said that it was too cold to work, but I said no, I think they will float away in time. She explained that a family member had departed. I replied a nice tribute and I’ll watch them pass across when they go. I suspected the death of either the father or grandfather but felt unable to ask. I walked away with Cosmo looking back to see if they had worked.
It was quite a distance away when they did float into view. Sadly there was practically no wind, but what there was had not sent them over the sea, but in the opposite direction inland. They moved towards the moon and I saw the first one go down still burning onto the roof of a bungalow on the other side of the green. The other 2 went out while high in the sky. On the way back the family had gone, but I found an unlaunched lantern about 100 yards from where I met them. It was broken, but I felt strongly enough to bring it home with me? To find a shocking Arsenal score line after being 3 goals ahead. Equalizer in the last minute…ooh…………… probably still qualify though.
