When I am old

I will wear soft gray sweatshirts

and a bandana over my silver hair

and I will spend my social security checks

on wine and my dogs.
 

I will sit in my house on my well-worn chair

and listen to my dogs' breathing.

I will sneak out in the middle

of a warm summer night

and take my dogs for a run,

if my old bones will allow ...
 

When people come to call, I will smile

and nod as I show them my dogs

and talk of them and about them

the ones so beloved of the past

and the ones so beloved of today.
 

I will still work hard cleaning after them,

mopping and feeding them and

whispering their names

in a soft loving way.
 

I will wear the gleaming sweat

on my throat,

like a jewel and I will be

an embarrassment to all

especially my family

who have not yet found

the peace in being free

to have dogs as your best friends.
 

These friends who always wait,

at any hour, for your footfall

and eagerly jump to their feet

out of a sound sleep,

to greet you as if you are a God.
 

With warm eyes

full of adoring love and hope

that you will always stay,

I'll hug their big strong necks,

I'll kiss their dear sweet heads

and whisper in their very special company.
 

I look in the Mirror

and see I am getting old.

This is the kind of person I am

and have always been.

Loving dogs is easy,

they are part of me.
 

Please accept me for who I am.

My dogs appreciate my presence in their lives

they love my presence in their lives

When I am old this will be important to me

you will understand when you are old

if you have dogs to love too.
 

(Author unknown)