8.2 Animals - Old Farm Dog

Bestest Friend and I are in the middle of a blog project. Each day of the month we will post a picture on a pre-determined theme and write a little something about it. The theme for the second day of each month is "Animals."
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I sat down next to him, crossed my legs underneath me, and slowly stretched my hand out. He looked at me without moving his head, huffed quietly, and I took it as assent to scratch him behind the ears, listening to all he had to say.  

I used to run around these fields, through the barn, chasing after the farmer's children. I used to hop on the tractor, ride in the back of the pickup truck, tongue hanging out. I used to get up and greet everyone who drove up my driveway. I used to play fetch with a tennis ball and smell all the smells and eat all the treats.

Now I'm an old dog. I don't know if I'll make it through the winter. It hurts to get up, I can't see the ball anymore, and the farmer's kids have all grown up and left. There's a new dog, a younger dog, you can see him over there. He's a good guy, but now he's the one who rides in the tractor and the pickup.  I nap here, I sneak into the farmhouse to warm myself by the fireplace, and I hope that someone occasionally remembers to pet me.

"And you are the handsomest, friendliest, most hard-working dog that they've ever known." 

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To see what Bestest Friend wrote about the theme of the day, check out her blog, Too Legit to Quit.