A Summer's Tale

For several weeks one summer, a neighborhood boy would walk his enormous dog past my house every night. If ever there were such a mixed pair, I had never it before. He was a young boy, no older than 12 or so, not so very tall, but just beginning to grow some prominent musculature. He had shaggy blond hair, that glistened like spun gold in the waning twilight. The dog, a towering, dark chocolate colored muscular mastiff, stood as tall at the withers as his master. It was funny to see such a small boy with the huge beast. Most clear nights, they could be seen going happily down our street without incident.

One clear, summer evening, as my darling wife and I sat upon our porch, drinking iced tea and smoking cigarettes, the boy strolled by, as usual, with his dog. Suddenly, the mammoth dog spotted a cat! Yowling loudly, with a tail puffed to about four inches in diameter, the frightened cat darted down the street, (I swear, that cat looked like a cartoon cat!) with the big brute tearing after it. Terrified, the boy tried to keep his beast from chasing the poor traumatized feline by yanking on the leash, but the humongous animal was too strong and just dragged the boy along with him. Intent on catching his prey, the big dog continued in hot pursuit, dragging the hapless boy behind him. My wife and I were hard put to hold back our laughter as the poor child was dragged further down the street. My neighbor's boy continued to yank hard on the leash, shouting "Heel, boy! Cone on boy. PLEASE stop, boy!", trying to stop his charging dog. Unsuccessful, he had no choice but to keep barreling down the street still holding firmly to the dog's lead. Finally, near the corner, the cat shimmied up a skinny tree and escaped over a fence. Unable to pass this obstacle, the dog stopped chasing the cat, but continued to bark in frustration at the fence.

The boy rubbed and crooned at his beloved dog a few minutes and sat down on the curb under the tree to catch his breath. I watched them, fascinated, as he stroked and cuddled the dog, all the while speaking words of encouragement,. I had to laugh again as he told the dog "it's OK, boy, it was that dumb old cat's fault, anyway.", and kissed his huge pet square on the nose. He kept at it until his walking buddy eventually calmed down. Amazingly, the boy and his behemoth nonchalantly continued their stroll as if nothing had ever happened. As they passed my house on their way home, we waved in greeting to each other.

As a huge, round orange moon rose and the stars started twinkling, my wife and I went to sit on the porch swing. She and I talked about it for a little longer, as the shadows grew longer and the sky grew darker. When we finished our cigarettes and glasses of tea my lovely wife and I went inside. It turned out to be another very beautiful summer night.