Dead Dogs
Many years ago I found myself spending nights by the bed of a convalescing patient while reading aloud from a Stephen King novel. The book was , the story of a father who brings his dead son back to life after discovering an ancient burial ground just beyond a pet's graveyard in some eerie woods. My late-night reading sessions would usually last an hour and, when the patient started to nod off or snore, I would climb on my bicycle and ride home. My route would take me past one of those big municipal cemeteries in the east end of Glasgow and,as you can imagine, I tended to pedal just a little faster at that point...especially when the street lights failed.
Of course, thinking back about those midnight rides through the east end, I realise I had a lot more to fear from the living than the deceased. But if my luck ran out there was always the chance I would be set upon by a gang of dead neds. I mean, we're all familiair with zombie movies...but imagine zombies on Buckfast! And what if they also had dead Rottweilers?
I hadn't thought about any of this until the other night when I persuaded the Zedettes to join me on a sunny evening stroll through the Ness Islands in Inverness. They, in turn, persuaded me we should take the dog with us. Just as well really, because lately I've been trying to distance myself from him. Well, what with the current credit squeeze I tend to regard pet food and vet bills as the kind of luxury items we may have to sacrifice so that I can continue to afford beer.
But then we came across a little pet cemetery. The Ness Islands are a favourite haunt of dog walkers and, it seems, they have been for over a hundred years. One stone - marking the final resting place of "Ruffie" dated back to the turn of the last century, while others for 'Mac' and 'Lucky' had been placed over the past thirty years or so.
It made me look at our wee dog and think what joy he has brought to our own little family. I made a mental note to place more value on his every bark and sniff.
I just wish I could remember his name.
