"Duke" (A Poem about a family dog) (1967/1968)

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Below are photos of beloved family pets we've had over the years. Could not find one of "Duke", who this blogpost is really about. Read on for the entire story:

                                                   (Cammy) (Female / Mixed Breed) (circa 1968 - 1981)
                                                   (Family pet when I was a child, with my parents and sister -                                                                     some years after "Duke")

                                                      (Buff) (Male / Cocker Spaniel) (1998 - 2012)
                                                      (Family pet with my own family and Son)

                                                             

Today I was revising my collection of poems which I have written over the years, when my thoughts took me back to a time when I was a very young child who had a great opportunity to write her very first poem. I would like to share that very first, and very short, poem ever written by me during my youth. I was eleven years old, in fifth grade, attending Public School 132 (circa 1967/1968), in Brooklyn, New York. I believe this was a class assignment. We were asked to write a poem about a pet – or anything dear to us. I chose to write about our very first family pet, who was no longer with us at the time. He was our puppy “Duke”; a beautiful mixed breed (not sure what type of mix). We had to have him removed from the home years earlier, however, since he was a bit vicious. He bit everyone in the family whenever approached – my Dad, my Mom, my Sister and Me. Yes, I was sad because he was a cute fluffy ball of brown fur, with floppy ears that made him even cuter; but as an adult, I learned that a dog must never run the household, and a dog must never bite the hand that feeds him. Despite that, “Duke” will always have a special place in my heart. He was the first family dog/pet that we had the pleasure of loving and nurturing for less than a year before we had to give him up.

Anyway, back to the poem…After I wrote it and turned it in to class, I discovered that I had a passion, early on, for words, rhyming, poetry – and later, fiction. Throughout the rest of my life, I wrote all of it - and continue to do so in retirement. For many years it was just a passion I kept to myself. Unfortunately, some of those writings got misplaced over the years, never to be seen again. Today, however, I self-publish and share my writings with the world. Hopefully, readers will enjoy those writings as much as I enjoy writing them.

Well, here is that first short poem ever written by me, during my younger years; a time that would direct my life somehow - although I didn't realize it then. After all, I was just an eleven year old, fifth grade girl, submitting a poem as a class assignment - about her first family dog named “Duke”:
                                                            

"Duke"

I had a dog
who was very cute
He was big and brown
and what a brute
The only thing
he'd ever do
was eat and drink
the whole day through

And that's my story about my first family pet, my first short poem, and the discovery of a passion that would remain with me throughout my life.