Man and Dog
Siegfried Sassoon
Who's this—alone with stone and sky?
It's only my old dog and I—
It's only him; it's only me;
Alone with stone and grass and tree.
What share we most—we two together?
Smells, and awareness of the weather.
What is it makes us more than dust?
My trust in him; in me his trust.
Here's anyhow one decent thing
That life to man and dog can bring;
One decent thing, remultiplied
Till earth's last dog and man have died.
Siegfried Sassoon
Who's this—alone with stone and sky?
It's only my old dog and I—
It's only him; it's only me;
Alone with stone and grass and tree.
What share we most—we two together?
Smells, and awareness of the weather.
What is it makes us more than dust?
My trust in him; in me his trust.
Here's anyhow one decent thing
That life to man and dog can bring;
One decent thing, remultiplied
Till earth's last dog and man have died.
********* Balachandran, Trivandrum 10.03.2010
wonderful poem...I love dogs too!
ReplyDeleteWell..the poem is great , but i cant really get it becasue i am terrified of dogs!
ReplyDeleteEspecially the domesticated ones , they're stupid and will bark upon anyone.
The stray ones are intelligent , they dont scare people too much by growling and barking and what not!!
@gymnast: There are two kinds of people in the world; those who love dogs and those who don't.
ReplyDelete1. to be terrified of the only one animal capable of unconditional love and faithfulness and loyalty to man is not the problem of the dogs.
2. domesticated or otherwise, dogs are neither stupid nor intelligent; these are the standards set by man. Dogs are dogs.
3. Growling and barking is part of alerting their clan members of an intruder into their territory; it is also a warning signal for the intruder to stay away.
4. Try to love and understand dogs and all other creatures. They are the ones who makes a difference in life; not humans.
5. The bottom line is - never blame others for the shortcomings one may have. To be scared of cockroaches, of snakes, of scorpions - the problem is with us, to be scared of creatures who do not harm you except in self-defense. Man is the only animal one should be scared of, because he is the only creature capable of unreasonable behaviour.
Hope you will overcome your fear. Try to be friendly with your friend's dogs or something. You are missing a lot of happiness and pleasure that dogs only can give.
nice blog . nice poetry . :)
ReplyDeletei enjoyed ure comment equally! we keep thinking of getting a dog.. and then the invariable.. what if we need to travel?... may be someday when anya is a little bigger... i would be able to understand the love you wrote so endearingly about...
ReplyDelete@archi-val: Thanks! will have a look-see at yours!
ReplyDeleteKalps: Better get the dog asap. Let Ananya grow up with the dog. Get a big dog breed or a good-looking mongrel. I don't keep breed dogs as a rule. But I love German Shepherds and Golden retrievers. When you go off on a long tour, make sure you can leave the dog/s with someone who loves them and will take good care of them. Never tie up the dog; let he/she be a member of the family. A dog is the best thing that can happen to man! Do not believe what dog-haters tell you about its falling hair and saliva and hygiene. I have grown up with dogs (Even when I was in the womb!) and so has P and K and it has only enriched our lives, like so many I know...
Good Da,
ReplyDeleteI read a short retort of David Attenbourgh. He was asked if he were to come back into the world what animal would he want to be.He said ," it depends upon the company" . And as you also will agree Bal's Dogs are better company than man.
Stopped in to check on you Balan. I hope to hear from you soon..Your poem is great; however, I am a cat person myself...But dogs are excellent companions... Stop by when you can...
ReplyDeleteReminds me the last few pages of M.T's "Randamoozam"- where Yudhishtiran was followed by a dog
ReplyDeleteI'm an out and out Dog person too! I own a black she-Labrador named Tasha.
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