DALMATIAN VACATION
It was a rowdy fire station,
Gus was bouncing off the ceiling.
Chief howled, “Send that dog on a vacation!
My frazzled nerves could use some healing.”
Gus had gotten restless in the city,
So we grabbed his sleeping bag and pillow,
And sent him off to see Aunt Millie,
On her ranch just south of Amarillo.
“We're so glad you came to see us,
Make yourself at home out in the barn.
On behalf of all my nephews, boys, and nieces,
Welcome to the Circle T Ranch at Berry Hill Farm.”
It was a land of prairie dogs and bison,
Under big blue skies and golden sun.
The plains stretched past the far horizon,
And Gus had all the room to run.
They held a Texas chilidog dinner,
In honor of this new Dalmatian.
The played fiddle tunes around the fire,
The perfect start to his vacation.
With the Milky Way his blanket,
Gus drifted off into the night.
With no alarms or bells to wake him,
He was up at dawn's first light.
Punching doggies sounded scary,
So Gus hit the trail instead.
He headed out into the prairie,
To see what lay ahead.
He came across a one room schoolhouse,
From an era long ago.
Inside, a badger, crow, and field mouse
Sat in desks all in a row.
As he wandered through the doorway
To peek into these curious classes,
A young bluebird read an essay
To an older dog with glasses.
“Come on in, my spotted stranger,
This is Plains and Western History.
I’m Panhandle Andy, retired Texas Ranger,
Today we’re studying unsolved mysteries.”
“He robbed a bank, a train, and stagecoach,”
The young bluebird then continued,
“He broke out of jail in Amarillo,
Bart was a crafty fox and outlaw shrewd.
Sheriff Brenner packed his knapsack,
And grabbed his faithful Deputy Otto.
They tracked Bart to old LaGrange and back,
And across the Llano Estacado.
He eluded all their stake-outs,
They kept him always on the run.
They nearly caught him by the Pecos,
They wouldn’t rest ‘til justice was done.”
All at once the schoolhouse vanished,
And Gus woke up from his dream.
He checked his clock and was astonished,
For it was barely half past three.
The rising sun filled Gus with wonder,
As he admired the purple sky.
It had been a most refreshing slumber,
On a perfect night in mid-July.
At once the whole earth rumbled,
A sound like thunder from on high.
To his feet Gus quickly stumbled,
To see a cattle drive go by.
He went swimming in a sinkhole,
And caught some cat-fish for his breakfast.
He brushed his teeth and packed his bedroll,
Then found a trail and headed west.
He had adventures in a ghost town,
And ran through fields of sage in bloom.
He found a country western hoedown,
And it was still just barely noon.
The view was always lovely,
No matter where that dog would go.
It was a land of people friendly,
Where every stranger said hello.
Each morning was a new day,
And the fun got even better.
Nothing to do but prance and play,
Gus wished this trip could last forever.
One the last day of vacation,
Gus met a cowboy on the trail.
He struck up a conversation,
And listened to the cattleman’s tale.
“I’ve climbed the mountains in Alaska,
And walked through deserts filled with sand.
I owned a ranch in west Nebraska,
And crossed the mighty Rio Grande.
I’ve seen the Rocky Mountains’ splendor,
Where the deer and antelope play,
I’ve driven cattle down from Denver,
To a ranch in Santa Fe.
How ‘bout you,
My spotted friend?
Whatcha do
And where ya been?”
“I’ve been lots of places,
But usually by mistake.
I work at a fire station,
In Mobile Bay, at 5th and Drake.
I wanna be a cowboy,
Where every day is like vacation.
With all the stress I don’t enjoy
My current occupation.”
“Such honorable jobs are very few,
And braver men do not exist.
They’d lay down their very lives for you,
There’s no greater love than this.”
“I think that once I heard this stuff,
Perhaps at Sunday morning worship.
But these spiritual things are much too tough,
And I’m afraid I just don’t understand it.”
“Good bye my four-legged friend, I hope to see ya later,”
And Gus trotted down the trail.
Through a cloud he saw a grain elevator,
And his face at once turned pale.
A little girl, her doll, and kitten
Were leaning out an upstairs window.
The smoke had them terribly frightened,
They called out for help to Gus below.
He bolted through the fiery blazes,
Gus had to fight back all his fear.
He ran through the dark and smoky mazes,
Yet his mission still stayed clear.
The little girl was quickly rescued,
That cat landed right side up,
Even the doll came out uninjured,
But what happened to that spotted pup?
The entire building then erupted,
It was a mighty powerful blow,
Out a window Gus was blasted,
He crashed hard to the ground below.
He survived that terrible danger,
It was the narrowest escape.
Gus must have had a guardian angel,
For he got up without a scrape.
Aunt Millie phoned us in elation,
And our Chief had to confess,
“He never makes obedience lessons,
Yet he’s learning nonetheless.”
It had been exciting on vacation,
And to be out on his own.
But Gus’s friends were at the station,
And it was time to go back home.
David J Allen
February 6, 2005
<== Hidden Power . . . . . Back to Top . . . . . Tae Kwon Dog ==> . . . . . Gus’s Home Page