In her memory

The sky is red

Warming the sad boy and his dog

Seeing he is down and broken without her

A voice of steel reminds him

“She has not left us, rather she will be with us always”

A gentle nudge from his dog reminds the boy they day she brought him home

That sad, lonely little fuzzy face begging for him to lay hands upon him

“You take care of him and he will take care of you”

Six months later the dog is laying its head in his lap covered in tears

A mom is in the next room dying, breathing her last breathes

“Take care of my boys, don’t let them forget me”

“Never”

The sky is red when they stand graveside as Taps plays on

The dog nudges closer to the boy as he cries, the gunshots still ringing in his ears

“It’s alright boy, Mommy’s gone now, I will take care of you and you will take care of me”

Eight years later a young man stands at the doorway

“No you stay here and take care of Dad while I am in college”

He pulls away as the dog nudges Dad

“It’s alright boy, you take care of me and I will take care of you”