My name is Chester

Hello, my name is Chester,

My family calls me Chet,

I am about to tell you,

The most amazing story yet,

Let me tell you about

My wonderful family

It consists of my mom and dad,

And a precious girl named Emily,

Some people call Emily special,

Others use a really bad name,

I just do what comes natural to a dog,

We love everyone the same

Emily is five years old now,

Her life started out a bit rough,

The family she was born into

Were going through times that were tough,

They said they didn't have what it takes,

To raise such a special girl,

So they put her up for something called adoption,

Thats when mom and dad entered her world,

My parents are really caring people,

They make our lives fun through and through,

Going the extra mile for special occasions,

They even remember my birthday too,

See Emily and me have a special bond,

And our stories are similar too,

There was a time when I wasn't wanted,

I thought my life was through,

See, I was born in a litter of eleven,

My birth mom always made sure we were fine

She always made sure we were fed and clean

She was always working overtime,

Eventually my brothers and sisters,

Started getting brand new homes you see,

Eventually everyone was adopted,

Everyone … But me.

By now, I was three months old,

It was just mom and me,

I never felt loved by my owner,

Some days I wouldn’t get much to eat,

My mom was always so sacrificial

Part of her food she would save for me,

Then one day my owner said Let’s go for a ride!

My lucky day! I was in for a treat,

My emotions I could not hide!

I wonder why he waited until sundown,

For my first car ride surprise,

It was very dark and a bit rainy,

There seemed to be a tear in my mom's eye,

My owner was quiet during my ride that night,

In a bag he packed some food and a treat,

Then he pulled off on the side of the road,

At the end of a pitch black street,

C'mon boy he happily yelled,

I jumped out and started looking around,

Then he jumped back into the car that night,

The tires made a loud screeching sound,

Taillights in the distance

Slowly fading against the night sky,

He left a half a bowl of food,

The saddest part is he didn't say goodbye,

Surely he would be back for me,

Of people dogs always think the best,

Sometimes even a dogs loyalty,

Can be put through the toughest of tests,

So I figured I better start walking,

My mom would surely be missing me,

So I gobbled down the half bowl of food,

It was so dark I could barely see,

Aimlessly looking for familiar smells,

On a strange road in the middle of the night,

After hours I saw a miracle in the distance,

Someone had left on a porch light,

This big house was out in the country,

Behind the house appeared to be a barn,

The door was miraculously opened,

Maybe I could stay the night, away from harm,

I peeked my head inside the door,

Being real cautious of course,

Seems I wasn’t the only visitor that night,

In the back was a huge black horse,

I wasn’t going to bother him,

I just needed a little sleep,

So I layed in a soft pile of hay,

Through the night I didn’t make a peep,

Awakened five hours later

To a very beautiful sunrise,

That’s when my miracle happened,

I call it a sight for sore eyes,

I heard the barn door open,

This next event would surely change my world

Entering the barn was a beautiful lady,

And a precious little girl,

I heard the little girl yell loudly,

Mom look, a puppy for me,

Her mom yelled Emily don’t touch,

He might have something called rabies,

They ran in and yelled for dad to come out,

He brought out a plastic crate,

While the woman was inside fixing food

She put some for me on a plate,

They put me in the plastic box,

Set me in the back of the truck,

I was thinking, not another ride,

Maybe this one I'll have better luck,

The place he took me to was a doctor,

My dad called her the Vet,

She was one of the nicest people

I think I have ever met,

She did do some weird things,

A couple even a little hurt me,

But all these things had to be done,

So I could stay with my new family!

See God really does work miracles

Me and Emily were at the end of our rope,

But because of one big hearted family,

They offered up both of us hope,

Now me and Emily are inseparable,

I thank God for that barn's open door,

The only thing me and Emily ever disagree about,

IS WHO REALLY NEEDS WHO MORE!!!

(Jerry Wayne Baldwin)

*****

I would like to thank Jerry Wayne Baldwin for his kind permission to publish his poems on my blog.

His book “This K-9 of Mine: Poetic short stories from a dog's point of view, plus a few from the owner's vantage point, too.” is available as Kindle version here.