Competition

Highly Commended

Old Blue
by Barry Davey
Peak Crossing, Qld

 I though old Blue was sleepin’
Out there layin’ in the sun.
I yelled and whistled to him
But the bugger wouldn’t come.

“Come on Blue you mongrel!
Get up in the truck.”
But he just kept on layin’ there
Like he didn’t give a stuff.

I grabbed a rock and threw it
And it whistled past his head.
It was just then it hit me
Struth, I think Old Blue is dead.

I stood and looked at my old mate
Who lay there on the ground.
His eyes were shut, his belly flat
He never made a sound.

I stood there and I pondered
About the things that we had done.
But the times we had together
Were not quite always fun.

There was a snake bite that he’d suffered
That nearly saw him die.
A broken leg, and ribs to match
And stitches by the mile.

“Cripes” old mate, when I add it up
You’ve cost me quite a quid.
And now I’ll have to buy a pup
To entertain the kids.

‘Holly smoke!’, the wife and kids
They’ll suffer weeks of sorrow.
And to make things worse, Blue’s timings crook
It’s the wifes’ birthday tomorrow.

So I grabbed his lifeless body
And I headed for the shed.
I’d hide him there for a day or two
And then I’ll tell ‘em that he’s dead.

I laid him on a bed of straw
His tongue was hangin’ out.
I gently pushed it in again
And closed his gapping mouth.

“I’ll miss you mate”
I softly said, as I gave him one last pat.
Just then I hear a car pull up
“The wife and kids are back!”

“Hey dad, what you doin’”
“Ah nothin’, lets go in the house.”
“No thanks Dad, we’re gunna play with Blue”
And they started singin’ out.

Should I tell them here and now
They’ll mourn his death for weeks.
I tried to get the words out
As tears rolled down my cheeks.

They called and whistled to him
And Blue comes racin’ out the shed.
Well how was I supposed to know
The kids had taught him to play dead.