"Now We Are Six"

One year ago today, on June 19, 2014, my sweet dog Joey was surrendered to a shelter in Brooklyn. At the time he was surrendered, his age was given as five. So, I am declaring today, June 19, 2015, the day he turns six.

When I was one,

I had just begun.

When I was two,

I was nearly new.

When I was three,

I was hardly me.

When I was four,

I was not much more.

When I was five,

I was just alive.

But now I am six,

I'm as clever as clever.

So I think I'll be six

now and forever.

--A. A. Milne

Of course, six in dog years is something like forty in human years, but if Joey is as long-lived as my beloved William, who came just shy of reaching the remarkable age of seventeen, Joey and I have at least a decade of happy days before us.

COPYRIGHT 2015 CAROLE OSTERINK