A Sad Farewell

I received an email from a friend of mine today with news they had to put their beloved dog Sheppy to sleep today, 105 years old. A good life led for sure. This news reminded me of the poem Jimmy Stewart wrote about his dog Beau. It's been awhile since I have read it and it is as wonderful today as the day he read it on Johnny Carson's show. So this is for the family that loved their Sheppy so very much.

"Beau" by Jimmy Stewart He never came to me when I would call

Unless I had a tennis ball,

Or he felt like it,

But mostly he didn't come at all. When he was young

He never learned to heel

Or sit or stay,

He did things his way. Discipline was not his bag

But when you were with him things sure didn't drag.

He'd dig up a rosebush just to spite me,

And when I'd grab him, he'd turn and bite me. He bit lots of folks from day to day,

The delivery boy was his favorite prey.

The gas man wouldn't read our meter,

He said we owned a real man-eater. He set the house on fire

But the story's long to tell.

Suffice it to say that he survived

And the house survived as well. On the evening walks, and Gloria took him,

He was always first out the door.

The Old One and I brought up the rear

Because our bones were sore. He would charge up the street with Mom hanging on,

What a beautiful pair they were!

And if it was still light and the tourists were out,

They created a bit of a stir. But every once in a while, he would stop in his tracks

And with a frown on his face look around.

It was just to make sure that the Old One was there

And would follow him where he was bound. We are early-to-bedders at our house--

I guess I'm the first to retire.

And as I'd leave the room he'd look at me

And get up from his place by the fire. He knew where the tennis balls were upstairs,

And I'd give him one for a while.

He would push it under the bed with his nose

And I'd fish it out with a smile. And before very long

He'd tire of the ball

And be asleep in his corner

In no time at all. And there were nights when I'd feel him

Climb upon our bed

And lie between us,

And I'd pat his head. And there were nights when I'd feel this stare

And I'd wake up and he'd be sitting there

And I reach out my hand and stroke his hair.

And sometimes I'd feel him sigh

and I think I know the reason why. He would wake up at night

And he would have this fear

Of the dark, of life, of lots of things,

And he'd be glad to have me near. And now he's dead.

And there are nights when I think I feel him

Climb upon our bed and lie between us,

And I pat his head. And there are nights when I think I

feel that stare

And I reach out my hand to stroke his hair,

But he's not there. Oh, how I wish that wasn't so,

I'll always love a dog named Beau. This poem is from Jimmy Stewart and His Poems by Jimmy Stewart, published by Crown Publishers, Inc. in 1989.